The Colorado statesman., 1924-08-16

e y | gas mask? Well, he isn't pretty but
| G IA | he has to 1t nowadays to keep
S-SS3SFsI up with the times You see, in that
SSItTT{sS big train robbery not long ago near
~ RI Chicago the robbers not only had an
ys5txLg%H airplane and four automobiles, nitro
gIycerine dynamite, sawedof shot
guns and automatic pistols but also gas masks and
gas bombs So ten dozen robbers had an
easy time in holding up the 80 mail clerks on
gold mail and express train the ST. Paul and
getting away with registered mail containing two
millions 1t the gas bombs and gas
masks that did the business.
To be sure, Uncle Sam has caught most of the
robbers and got back most of the money, but such
things make lots of trouble. And Uncle Sam has
plenty of mail troubles 1t is
Just look at the size of his mail business. He's
got something like 10000 post ofices-and more
being established every day of the year. except
Sundays and legal holidays. There are nearly
100000 workers in the Post Office department and
they handle S3OOOOOO,OOO every year. And Uncle
Sam. not being in the business to make money, has
NIL kinds of trouble in making both ends meet In
the fiscal year of 1928, for example, it cost him
over S55O00O.O0O and he took in only about $685.
100000
And think of the things he has to attend to
stamps and envelopes; newspaper wrappers and
postal cards; money orders foreign and domestic;
pOstn savings banks first, second and hrdclass
matter and parcel post; arplane, railway, carrier
and rural route service and Why, Post
master General New has just been receiving bids
for IL 900, 100000 stamped envelopes and newspa-
per wrappers. The postal savings banks have
about $15000O,0O0 to the credit of deposltors.
There are $1,000 rural routes and more than 10000
star mail routes the latter involving an aggregate
annual travel by automobile and wagon of $1,000
900 miles Little things like these give hint of
Of Uncle Sans mail troubles.
Thing that keeps Uncle Sam the jump every
minute in his mail business is our increase in pop
unton. That from about 92,OOO0G0 to lO6,-
100000 in the ten years, 19lO-2O And an esti-
mate by the census bureau puts our population on
July I, 1924, at 112,0TS,Gl1, an Increase of about
T00O,000 in the last four years. And that with
restricted immigration, This means more towns.
more post offices. more letters-more everything.
This new estimate of the population also shows
that there now 10 cities having population
bf 100000 more compared with 6S last year
This means that Uncle sam is hard put to 1t to
keep up with the procession in the large cities.
His post Office facilities have way of becoming
Inadequate night. Here's an Illustration
Years ago he built the great federal building In
Chicago occupying Il whole block in the loop. 1t
was 10 be the last word in post ofices-and the
massive pile was out of date before II was COM
pleted In other words Chicago's mail business
grew faster than Uncle Sam built Congressman
grtten of Illinois will introduce bill at the next
session of congress to sell the building and site
for approximately s22Oo0,OOO and use the money
for two modern post offices, one OH the south
side md the West side
Another thing that keeps Uncle Sam awake
nights is the incessunt ever-increasnS demand
for speed and more speed Time Is money says
he Ii pretty near DelnS HleTally
true in the mills. The experts have calculated
thnt the new trnnscontincnta air mall service
caves anywhere from $1,000 to $4,000 day. rep
resentins interest money transported across
the country. Congressman NJ. clyde keliy OF
PENNSYLVANIA goes so far MS hold that the serv-
ice by snving three days, increases our available
cash reserve by Sl5oOO0OO0 each day. He is there
fore sponsoring II bill in congress greatly increas-
ing It's scope. In the meantime requests for air
mail service pouring in on Second Assistant
Postmaster General Henderson for air service.
Even Alaska wants 1t.
If Is no wonder that the Chicago post office was
ont of date before finished. As the railroads sup
planted tie stage and pony express In the trans
portntlon Of the mails, Chicago-because II soon
came TO he the railroad center of the country
came TO be the mail center. Through II now
moves the mlghtiest mass Of mail matter that Is
centralized anywhere ON earth.
Mail operations quickly outgrew facilities The
situation got so bad in 1919 that committee of
the railway mail service made thorough study
Of the operations Chicago. AS result of this
study the necessary facilities were figured out
and comprehensive scheme of terminal opera
ton was adopted. The plan called for site CON
yenently located for both railway mail cars and
auto trucks; Il building of adequate dimensions
and design in which to hardle the mall economi-
caIly: and an extensive application of mechanical
apparatus
The result of all this is that there has lust been