Part 19

From the little room which we have termed the “distribution-room,” letters are sent and scattered over the area named above, to the full amount of 18,000 daily, not including those called “city drops.” The distributor is to know, _or is supposed to know_, apart from consulting the directory, the name of every street, lane, and alley, as well as their locality, so that he can place the letters so directed into their separate pigeon-holes, both for the city carriers and the “subs.” He has to observe the limits of certain routes, and see that his letters do not go astray, thus causing a delay in the delivery of at least twenty-four hours. Many letters are received without direction, and others, again, so imperfectly given that it requires the exercise of a little of Job’s patience, assisted by an imperfect directory, to find out where they actually belong. The carriers, however, to whom these letters are submitted, being familiar with the names of persons on their routes, select from this _débris_ of letters those that they _think_ belong to the parties to whom they are so carelessly directed. A good carrier never brings back a letter to the office until he is fully satisfied that it is not on his route. _Philadelphia can boast of such._

This retentive quality is also powerfully exercised at the box-windows. There are 2600 boxes, which we may say will average six letters each daily, thus making an aggregate of 15,600. These letters are selected from the “pile” by clerks, who actually know not only the names of the owners of the boxes, but the names of those who are entitled to their use,—as, for instance, the clerks and porters of the parties engaging them. This is what we term a wonderful exercise of memory and its practical application. Newspapers are distributed on the same principle as are the letters.

The newspaper department of a post-office is one that may well be called the “reservoir” of the press: here flows all that makes up that vast institution, here comes the highest standard of our literature, down to the meanest sheet venality produces. A number of men are constantly employed in the newspaper room, or, as we term it, “the rotunda of literature.” This is emphatically the wholesale room; for they deal in bulk. Papers coming singly, directed to individuals, pass through the same process as do the letters. The packages directed to neighboring cities find their way through the “rotunda” in canvas bags to their respective places of destination. Let us here say one word of

_THE PRESS._

It has identified itself with, and forms one of the main features of, our great republic. Its very liberty is essential to the nature of a free state. Its complicity and power claim for it a consideration which no other department of literature and science, however popular, can attain. The press of our country is now the medium, if not, in fact, the very source, of that knowledge of which as a nation we are so justly proud.

THE WORK OF THE POST-OFFICE is of such a nature, changing its character with every new incumbent, that it is utterly impossible to reduce it to a system of permanent order during one term of office. Move, however, it must, right or wrong: hence it is that some portion of its machinery may get out of order and thus militate against the probability of reaching perfection. Perfection! and who seeks perfection in any of the institutions established by man? Nature alone “is perfect indeed.” It was so from the beginning, not only in its elements and principles, but in its members and its organs.

“The post-office,” says a writer in “Fraser’s Magazine” for September 2, 1862, “no longer assumes to be perfect, and its conductors have renounced their claims to infallibility. Suggested improvements, if they can sustain the indispensable test of rigid scrutiny, are welcomed, and not, as of old, frowned away. The department acts under the conviction that to thrive it must discard the confidence heretofore placed in legal prohibitions, and seek its continuance of prosperity only by deserving it.”

The English post-office has far better opportunities of rendering its system more perfect than it is, from the fact that its clerks are not discharged on every change made in the heads of the department by the government. They are fixtures. But in this country no one engaged in a public office under one administration can calculate being continued under another.

A clerk in the post-office, being appointed for an especial duty, troubles himself very little about that of any other. He takes no interest in the general business or details of the office, from the fact _that his situation is not a permanent one_: hence it is that few postmasters are enabled, within four years, to bring the office out of the chaos into which a previous administration had reduced it, so as to congratulate himself upon making one step towards perfection. He has to study the political elements outside first, and by the time these are reconciled, nearly one-third of his term has expired. In another portion of this work we have alluded to this political clog placed against the wheels of the postal department, and retarding, if not materially impairing, its social, moral, and financial interests.

_LETTER-CARRIERS._

Letter-carriers are a very important class of men,—important, we mean, in their connection with the postal department. We speak of them here because their duties are not generally known to the public, nor their services properly appreciated or rewarded by the department. They are the “walking posts,” and carry with them daily thousands of dollars, which rarely are lost on their way to the recipients. The instances are so few of dishonest carriers that we have often been surprised that the fact has not been recorded ere this, so as it might be placed in juxtaposition with those _élite_ rogues in office who are daily robbing the government of millions. Is it because they are generally faithful? or is it because the position of a letter-carrier is one that requires no consideration from the department beyond the annual—rather limited—stipend for their services? The letter-carriers of our country represent a political class: they come forth from their respective wards under, as it were, leading politicians. The postmaster, in fact, has scarcely a voice in making these appointments. We have no objection to this system, as it is one peculiarly allied to the institutions of our country and mode of election; but we do object to good and honest men being discharged simply from the fact that a few politicians outside of an office want to get their particular friends in. This can scarcely be called rotation in office, as it frequently assumes an unjust, if not an intolerant, exercise of power.

We have alluded to the English post-office as being perhaps the best-ordered and best-conducted in the world, _for there changes are not made_.

In England carriers are classified. The lowest class are not so well paid, receiving only from 18 to 25 shillings per week. They are allowed by government, however, to receive presents, and their Christmas boxes and New-Year gifts,—thus realizing a nice little sum of money, as well as many useful and ornamental articles.[45] If the salary of a letter-carrier in England is not high, the position is so identified with the governmental patronage that he becomes a part and portion of the great institution itself. If he is taken sick, he has medical attendance and medicine furnished gratis. When unfitted for work, he may retire upon a pension, for which he has not to pay a farthing; and during service, if he insure his life for the benefit of his family, the post-office will assist him to pay the premium: this is done by allowing him twenty per cent. on all his payments. Every year the letter-carriers are allowed a fortnight holiday without any deduction from their pay. Many spare hours each day may be devoted to other pursuits; for, if when at work at the office his hours of duty exceed eight hours daily, he is at full liberty to ask for investigation and redress. See p. 205, Kendall.

The higher grade of carriers are distinguished from the lower by wearing a livery of the department and at its expense, viz.:—a scarlet coat with a blue collar, and buttons stamped with an impression of the royal arms. The carriers of the two-penny post wear the common citizens’ dress.

We have alluded to the general character of the letter-carriers of our city, and, we may justly and proudly say, of our country, being equal in point of moral standard, correct deportment, and honesty of purpose, to any other (public) class of men in the Union. Of this fact the writer has opportunities of knowing; and when we take into consideration the extremely low salaries they receive,—scarcely sufficient to support them,—the fact impresses itself upon us, as it should on the government, that a “_carrier’s fidelity, diligence, and experience should be properly rewarded._” We quote here nearly every postmaster-general’s language, _but as yet the words only stand on the record_!

During the writer’s connection with the department, there were but two instances of carriers being detected in opening letters and appropriating their contents to their own use. One of these men died suddenly while under heavy bonds for his appearance at court to answer for his crime; the other is now expiating his crime in the Penitentiary.

We have spoken more particularly about carriers and their general good character; but our remarks will apply to those who occupy positions in every department, from the chief clerks down to the wounded soldier who sweeps out the office.[46] It certainly must be a source of satisfaction to postmasters generally, that peculation, fraud, and robbery in their departments are of very rare occurrence. Many losses have been charged to the department, but in nine cases out of ten they have been traced to parties _who act as carriers between the post-office and merchants’ counting-houses_. These are boys and clerks who are authorized by merchants to take letters from their boxes, many of which, as we can prove, never reached their employers, but were opened and the money extracted. Under the old State laws this was laid down as simply a breach of trust: it is now made a criminal offence, and subjects the guilty party to imprisonment. Since the passage of this law there have been _but few such breaches of trust_.

In another portion of this work we have alluded to the decoy system as being uncalled for and insulting to the employees. It does seem as if the public and even postmasters themselves have an idea that _dishonesty is a national calamity_, and that it becomes a duty with them to suspect alike all who are in their employ. Suspicion, however, is no proof; and we are inclined to think that many _open robberies_ of the government can be traced to the fact that high positions _seem_ to sanction the deed. The poor wretch who steals a loaf of bread to keep his family from starving finds no mercy at the hands of the law, while the wholesale robber, the thief of millions, is simply required to make the amount stolen good! Where one public official robber is convicted for appropriating the public funds to his own use, thousands are annually tried and punished for taking a penny loaf! It is no wonder, therefore, that suspicion should haunt the guilty mind, and every man in power judge of others by the example set in high places.

Some years ago, long before the postal system became the mighty engine of power that it is now, a Philadelphia postmaster, since gathered to his fathers, openly stated that no man should intrust a clerk in the post-office (his own office) with the knowledge that a letter posted contained money!

How different is the English post-office in this respect from ours! There the employees are considered a part and portion of its national character, identified with it by all those ties which protection gives and justice sanctions. The government not only studies the present interest of all connected with the postal department, but amply provides for that of the future. (See p. 147.) Their confidence is not easily shaken; but like Othello, when they doubt, they prove; and on the proof there is no more but this:—Away at once!

_IMPORTANT POSTAL TABLES._

The following tables, carefully prepared, fully prove that there is no surer test of the advance of business and commercial enterprise than that which is learned from the increase of postage. A glance at the table from 1790 shows a wonderful increase in the short space of eight or ten years, entirely unexampled in the history of the world; and taken in connection, as we think it may be, with a similar increase in other statistics, it sets all previous examples completely aside. The fact is, the country is ignorant of the history of our postal department, a knowledge of which would tend materially to strengthen that love of country which a state of ignorance naturally lessens. The post-office department should no longer be as a sealed book to the nation.

Statement of Receipts and Expenditures of the Post-Office Department under Various Heads, and by States, for the Year ending June 30, 1862.

─────────────────────┬────────────┬────────────┬───────────┬──────────────┬──────────────┬────────────── States and │ Letter │ Newspaper │ Registered│ Stamps │ Total │ Compensation Territories. │ postage. │ postage. │ letters. │ sold. │ receipts. │ allowed │ │ │ │ │ │ postmasters. │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ ─────────────────────┼────────────┼────────────┼───────────┼──────────────┼──────────────┼────────────── Maine │ $16,151 48 │ $15,143 32 │ $364 75 │ $174,250 15 │ $205,909 70 │ $87,437 05 New Hampshire │ 5,270 41 │ 10,600 40 │ 245 15 │ 112,674 66 │ 128,790 62 │ 57,605 44 Vermont │ 5,040 02 │ 13,210 71 │ 107 80 │ 111,001 79 │ 129,360 32 │ 62,723 43 Massachusetts │ 53,960 83 │ 26,017 85 │ 938 25 │ 630,945 54 │ 711,862 47 │ 178,302 36 Rhode Island │ 4,597 27 │ 3,138 61 │ 124 00 │ 71,259 82 │ 79,119 70 │ 18,723 46 Connecticut │ 10,360 68 │ 16,560 24 │ 200 55 │ 199,995 04 │ 227,116 51 │ 78,643 49 New York │ 186,079 59 │ 82,877 23 │ 2,462 60 │ 1,543,349 08 │ 1,814,768 50 │ 375,647 15 New Jersey │ 17,902 57 │ 11,681 08 │ 254 10 │ 145,255 42 │ 175,093 17 │ 69,264 81 Pennsylvania │ 70,982 27 │ 41,634 24 │ 2,054 20 │ 770,025 27 │ 884,695 98 │ 248,695 26 Delaware │ 1,782 20 │ 2,265 95 │ 50 95 │ 26,431 57 │ 30,530 67 │ 10,867 93 Maryland │ 19,330 33 │ 9,053 54 │ 412 15 │ 178,566 52 │ 207,362 54 │ 48,059 82 District of Columbia │ 8,113 23 │ 3,295 38 │ 714 85 │ 220,399 83 │ 232,523 29 │ 4,974 33 Virginia │ 8,261 65 │ 3,526 45 │ 301 50 │ 129,284 88 │ 141,374 48 │ 30,212 30 North Carolina │ 86 │ 1 00 │ ... │ 1 17 │ 3 03 │ 1 37 South Carolina │ 693 54 │ 16 68 │ 31 25 │ 8,734 47 │ 9,475 94 │ 1,173 96 Georgia │ ... │ ... │ ... │ ... │ ... │ ... Florida │ 224 29 │ 238 44 │ 27 10 │ 3,702 27 │ 4,192 10 │ 2,181 17 Alabama │ ... │ ... │ ... │ ... │ ... │ ... Mississippi │ 768 82 │ 45 39 │ 2 10 │ 2,598 46 │ 3,414 77 │ 571 74 Texas │ 410 41 │ 303 63 │ 3 25 │ 3,774 49 │ 4,491 78 │ 1,568 48 Kentucky │ 10,853 71 │ 10,413 86 │ 225 36 │ 156,383 79 │ 177,876 71 │ 56,134 80 Michigan │ 18,627 77 │ 20,035 00 │ 565 60 │ 198,002 35 │ 237,230 72 │ 96,342 58 Wisconsin │ 20,500 74 │ 21,160 79 │ 706 15 │ 200,304 73 │ 242,672 41 │ 92,140 83 Louisiana │ 413 88 │ 12 50 │ 1 55 │ 1,063 97 │ 1,491 90 │ 164 83 Tennessee │ 346 25 │ 294 67 │ 9 65 │ 13,242 05 │ 13,892 62 │ 1,722 39 Missouri │ 17,158 44 │ 12,012 51 │ 419 45 │ 197,941 27 │ 227,531 67 │ 54,391 22 Illinois │ 35,528 66 │ 40,921 73 │ 1,516 90 │ 512,537 84 │ 590,505 13 │ 192,517 25 Ohio │ 51,011 36 │ 46,777 68 │ 1,608 15 │ 601,087 26 │ 700,484 45 │ 242,660 99 Indiana │ 30,056 54 │ 28,366 16 │ 720 55 │ 258,659 00 │ 317,802 25 │ 133,765 80 Arkansas │ ... │ 46 │ ... │ 12 26 │ 12 72 │ 45 Iowa │ 12,736 41 │ 18,866 91 │ 444 60 │ 151,436 63 │ 183,484 55 │ 80,201 30 California │ 24,430 64 │ 9,869 93 │ 402 55 │ 218,540 19 │ 253,243 31 │ 48,672 41 Oregon │ 2,211 07 │ 1,467 34 │ 7 25 │ 10,390 35 │ 14,076 01 │ 5,975 93 Minnesota │ 5,907 22 │ 6,336 24 │ 159 05 │ 41,850 41 │ 54,253 22 │ 24,693 39 Kansas │ 1,842 71 │ 2,348 60 │ 44 25 │ 26,236 61 │ 30,472 17 │ 13,592 51 Utah │ 1,436 81 │ 174 49 │ 2 40 │ 1,348 58 │ 2,962 28 │ 1,597 13 Nebraska │ 843 61 │ 1,023 34 │ 9 35 │ 7,876 64 │ 9,752 94 │ 4,846 26 Washington │ 1,013 85 │ 258 66 │ 2 45 │ 2,017 39 │ 3,292 35 │ 1,852 25 New Mexico │ 240 54 │ 95 00 │ 95 │ 1,246 42 │ 1,582 91 │ 815 24 Colorado │ 1,639 00 │ 569 83 │ 3 70 │ 6,404 97 │ 8,617 50 │ 4,478 89 Dakota │ 569 76 │ 72 23 │ 50 │ 817 40 │ 1,459 89 │ 810 78 Nevada │ 1,905 54 │ 862 01 │ 6 25 │ 3,200 68 │ 5,974 48 │ 3,500 44 ├────────────┼────────────┼───────────┼──────────────┼──────────────┼────────────── │ 649,205 26 │ 461,550 08 │ 15,151 20 │ 6,942,851 22 │ 8,068,757 76 │ 2,337,531 21 Deduct miscellan’s │ │ │ │ │ │ items │ 1,297 20 │ 745 22 │ 1 85 │ 32,719 33 │ 34,763 60 │ ... Add miscellaneous │ │ │ │ │ │ items │ ... │ ... │ ... │ ... │ ... │ 3,236 07 ├────────────┼────────────┼───────────┼──────────────┼──────────────┼────────────── │ 647,908 06 │ 460,804 86 │ 15,149 35 │ 6,910,131 89 │ 8,033,994 16 │ 2,340,767 28 On acc’t of route │ │ │ │ │ │ ag’ts, mail │ │ │ │ │ │ messengers, special │ │ │ │ │ │ transportation, │ │ │ │ │ │ for’n mails, &c. │ ... │ ... │ ... │ ... │ ... │ ... ├────────────┼────────────┼───────────┼──────────────┼──────────────┼────────────── │ │ │ │ │ │ Add receipts on │ │ │ │ │ │ account of │ │ │ │ │ │ emoluments, &c. │ ... │ ... │ ... │ ... │ ... │ ... │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ Deduct excess of │ │ │ │ │ │ receipts │ ... │ ... │ ... │ ... │ ... │ ... │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ │ ─────────────────────┴────────────┴────────────┴───────────┴──────────────┴──────────────┴──────────────