Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1924-09-23
GREAT PnoeRE&
MADE IN REelllE
! POSTMASTER new

POSTMASTER new
wA1hinsten. b. c.. sept. pa
statement OF facts communicated to
pos3mAsters By Postmasser 0enerai
New includes the following:
The expansion has been 70 rapid
ana At times uneseu that Il has for
short Intervals taxed 10 the extreme
al the eI1orts and enerSies OF the
postal oreaninatioA and the existing
appropriation This. expansion h
measured BY TWO distinct eonsiderA.
tione-~onA II the increase In postal
receipts. there having been q total
increase In three yeAr1 OF $1SS. 6O6 =
10. % that the annual receipts last
year reached the sum Of t012 UOO. 600
The other consideration n the spread
Of towns ana catieA due 10 the inllu-
ence OF the automobile. The same
number OF people doing the same
amount Of business are now spread
over q far greater area than former
~. People are not residing % cloae-
~ together Ia the cities. BecAuse
OF this fact cities have grown In the
last few yeArS out into the country
and suburbs to IN extent not ordi-
narily appreciated. The mail car
rier must 80 where~they are. It u
not possible to measure in exact
terms how much this new phase In
the spread Of cities has cost The pest.
al service in the number OF carriers
rendered necessary. the number Of
motor vehicle trucks required. and
otherwise.
I'm addition to the two foregoing
elements in postal expansion. 10 the
demand for better service, ana to 4
large degree this demand has also
been met.
ITO meet this postal expansion
and the service improvements, reg
ulAr' employees have been added to
the service to the number OF 1904.
These are divided as follows: Rail.
way mail clerks. 1850: iaborers in
post offces. 1850: motor. vehicle EN-.
ployes. 372; carriers, 62lT; and post
office clerks. D479.
within the cities there have been
ESTABLISHED 10l Tlassified sub-sta-
lions and 65T so-cailed contract
postal stations.
New carriers service in 104 VIII
lagos has been established, and new
city service in 1e4 small cities.
I'm farming and rural districts
there have been established In three
years zoos rural routes, and many
existing routes have been iengthen.
ed. % that the result II that the
service has been extended during
this time to $50, 3DS people who hith-
etto have had no delivery service
whatever At the present time. the
number of families served by rural
routes is 6634.D0O. aud the total DOB.
ulation IN $4,000, $40.
The motor. vehicle service now re.
quires, in order to perform it's part
in the postal service, S75S motor We.
hicle trucks or IT'S equivalent, which
is PAPA moro than was required three
years ago. OF this mum Der 627S are
government-owned. The remainder
are employed under contract or uh.
der yearly, daily or hourly rental. It
should be noted that the cost Of
maintaining and operating the gov
ernment-owned trucks has been re.
duced from SIC to &c per hour.
while this expansion of, and i'm.
provements in, the postal service has
been met In the foregoing manner,
1t 10 to be noted that the postal de-
ficit' has at the same time been re-
duced from $S3. 100000 to about S1S,-
OOO.OOO. This has been accomplished
almost wholly by the Inauguration or
better business methods, and the ap-
plication OF q rigid system Of ecoi,-
omy. 1t has not been Accomplished
by unreasonable exactions from
those who perform the work in the
postal service. In fact, the condi.
lions of labor have been very mark
eddy improved
I'm addition to securing a better
and a.
pie generally, there are certain par
ticular items OF improvements which
may be mentioned. Among these VT
note the following:
Daily air mail service on q route
from New York to San Francisco
has been established. The postage
paid by the public 10 So per ounce
for each OF the three zones. The
value OF such service to business and
to the development Of the science OF
aeronautics IL readily seen and fully
appreciated by the public. The
schedule 10 every day, including sun
days and holidays. and the time for
the trip IL "a hours and 45 minutes
going west, and 81 hours and 30 min.
utes coming east. New air mail
stamps, SC, 16c and 24c, have been
issued.
This ts the longest air line in the
world and 10 the only route upon
which night a. we'll as day flying 10
employed. Air mail was recommend
ed BY Postmaster Generals Hays ana |
Work and put in operation by ms
on July I. 1924. BY and with the An.
prevail Of President Coolidge ana
Congress.
AN airpIane service was estab.
lished and run ~ an experiment In
Alaska. covering q route from Fair
banks to McQrAth, which ordinarily
takes the dog sleds 30 days In each
direction. Larger careoes OF mail
were carried than possible to accom-.
modate in the dog sleds, and the
round trip wAs made In one day.
going in the morning ana back In
the evening. 2 1.2 hours to 8 hours
being required for each journey of
the plane"
The government 10 Installing armed
mail cars and armored motor trucks.
the transportation Of
mail with greater safeguards than
formerly.
The Advertising public, and IN fact. |
anyone IL now permitted to send
mail to patrona on rural routes hy
merely addressing to the number or |
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