- v v
JOHN DICKINSON SHERMAN
VERYONE is Interested In the work
ings of the Fost Office department.
Uncle Sam as mail carrier probably
comes closer to the ordinary citizen
in everyday life thnn in any other ca
pacity. There are 340,000 workers in
the department and it handles $3,000,
000,000 annually. Moreover, the or
dlnary public interest has been stimu
lated by the recent changes in the po
sition of postmaster general. First
was Will H. Hays, an Indiana lawyer,
who resigned to become regulator of
the moving pictures. Then came Hubert Work
; of Colorado, a practicing physician of national
reputation. Now comes former United States Sen
ator Harry S. New, an Indiana newspaper man.
Dr. Work goes to the Interior department as sec
retary, succeeding Albert B. Fall of New Mexico,
resigned.
Postmaster General Work, upon leaving the Post
Office department, submitted a biennial report.
March 4, 1921, to March 4, 1923, to the President.
It is an exceedingly Interesting document, so much
so that the senate ordered it printed in the Con
gressional Record in body type. The purpose of
this article is simply to set forth some of the items.
In this report which are of general public interest.
Incidentally, two of the pictures are given as sam
ples jot progress. The postal card printing machine
Is really up to date and the solution of the prob
lem of the most comfortable carrier for mail mat
ter means a lot to the letter-carriers. A third
shows former Postmaster General Frank Hitchcock
sending^the first package by parcel post December
31, 1913. It contained a silver loving cup ad
dressed to Postmaster Morgan of New York which
Is now In the National museum at Washington.
The report bears the title, "Regeneration of the
American Postal System," and begins with these
statements: In 1920-21 the postal deficit was $81,
387,387.08; in 1921-22 the postal deficit was $60,
815,400.36; in 1922-23 the postal deficit will be $30,
000,000 ; in 1923-24 there will be ito deficit.
The methods employed to reduce the deficits
by nearly $20,000,000 in the first period above were
varied and Ingenious. Examples are these:
Through the purchase of foreign exchange In
anticipation of settlements of balances on money
order business, the Post Office department made a
profit of $130,000, with only a single loss of $5,000.
Through the cancellation of an existing four-year
contract and successful negotiation of -a new agree
ment, an economy of $6,276,000 was effected.
Sweeping changes In the method of purchasing
supplies have earned approximately $1,500,000 to
$2,000,000 during the past two years. These
changes consisted of canceling many contracts at
war-iime prices and in the elimination of long-term
contracts covering every variety of supplies nec
essary for the Post Office department.
It appears that elimination of "tortuous" red
tape, causing endless waste and delay in admin
istration, was effected through the adoption of a
policy of decentralization, the result of which has
been the establishment of a miniature Post Office
department in each state, known as a central ac
counting post office. Fifty-two of them have been
organized and are In full operation throughout the
country. These central accounting offices conduct
the postal affairs of their respective territories,
serving their post offices with promptness and dis
patch almost incredible in comparison with the old
method of handling all postal business In the de
partment at Washington. The new system also
4 changed accounting In post offices, permitting post
masters to finance themselves from their receipts
Instead of sending the money to the department
and then having it returned to them through
vouchers to cover their expenses. Rendition and
auditing of half a million money-order accounts
_ ? was abolished and these activities were trans
ferred to the central accounting offices. Instituted
with absolutely no extra cost, decentralization re
sulted in the release of 740 employees at the de
partment at Washington, thereby saving $1,200,000
annually. A summary of the functions of the cen
tral accounting post offices includes: auditing of
quarterly accounts of postmasters; adjusting and
payment of parcel-post claims ; distribution of sup
plies, including stamps, within 24 hours instead of
a week or ten days. ^
By way of contrast It Is discovered In the report
? that rural route carriers of the postal service made
a complete enumeration of the pig and sow produe
tion of the United States. This census, conducted
after other administrations had refused to co-op-*
erate with the Department of Agriculture, was con
ducted In every state of thci union, rural route
carriers filling and distributing over 500,000 ques
tionnaires to farmers. The result was the first ac
. curate statistics upon the number of swine ever
A v. j. ja ife*.
itKsr&ARczz rwsxr
collected. Rural route carriers were also given
permission to assist state authorities in distribut
ing food to starving birds.
More than $400,000,000 out of $550,000,000 worth
of war savings stamps maturing January 1, 1923,
which have been redeemed thus far have been
handled by the Post Office department. Of this
amount about $05,000,000 worth were exchanged
for new treasury certificates. More than 50,000
cases of redemption requiring special procedure,
such as claims on account of lost registered cer
tificate, payment of certificates belonging to de
ceased' owners, and so forth, have been adjusted
to date. During the calendar year $336,232,470
worth of treasury saving certificates has been so
large as to nearly overwhelm the postal service,
causing both postmasters and employees In the
field and the department to work many hours
overtime. I ?
The world's greatest mall terminal ? two blocks
long, six stories high, and 80 feet wide ? was
opened In Chicago at the begljplng of 1923 to con
solidate the mail activities of this Important trans
portation center of the nation. This new terminal
has equipment capable of handling the postal busi
ness for the present and for years to come. Four
miles of belt conveyor, the longest system ever In
stalled, rapidly carry incoming mall to distribu
tors and deliver sacked mall to spiral chutes lead
ing to the mall cars. It Is conservatively estimated
that GOO per cent Increase In efficiency, chiefly
through the use of machinery adapted for parcel
post, Is effected in Chicago postal operations In the
new building. The new, specially designed dis
tribution system constitutes a revolution In the
methods of handling parcel post, and when In full
operation has a capacity of 100,000 sacks an hour.
On the track over which the terminal Is built 42
cars receive mall at one time.
No steps have been left untaken In extending the
beneficences of rural mail delivery to the farming
populations of- the country. A total of 741 new
rural routes were added during the past two years,
giving dally mall facilities to 381,000 people. In
addition, by the lengthening and readjusting of
over 4,000 existing rural routes, seme 263,000 In
habitants of farms were provided with increased
service. These changes had the direct effect of
giving every modern postal convenience to more
than 700,000 persons, bringing the number of rural
routes In full operation to 44,186, supplying mall
to approximately 6,425,000 families or 29.742,000
Individuals living In rural districts. < Particular
efforrs were also made to supply mall to farming
sections lacking in transportation and railroad ad
vantages by horse-drawn and motor vehicles, with
the result that the number (IT star mail routes was
increased to 10,715, Involving an annual travel ag
gregating 83,208,656 miles.
A successful movement to facilitate the delivery
of mails was the campaign for the Installation by
householders of mall receptacles at their front
doors. Started in the summer of 1922, this cru
sade was pushed energetically by the Post Oflice
department through postmasters. Hundreds of
letter carriers also succeeded In Inducing the pa
trons on their routes to provide these conveniences.
Estimates complied and submitted to the public
during the course of the campaign showed that the
sum of $5,350,000 would be saved in the time of the
35,000 carriers formerly wasted in stopping at
front doors, ringing door bells, and waiting for re^
sponses from householders. Another advantageous
feature of particular appeal *as the elimination
of the necessity of patrons going to the door every
time the mall man called. Practically evefry home
throughout the United States is now equipped with
a mail box or a door slot.
In order to eliminate errors in the sale of stamps
because of their similarity and to assist postal
clerks throughout the service in detecting short
paid matter an entire new series of stamps, 21 In
number, has been issued. Previously the various
denominations were almost identical in' appear
ance with portraits of either George Washington
or Benjamin Franklin upon them, and with only
a slight variation in color. The new series, re
garded as a masterpiece in the art of engraving,
were so designed that every one of*the stamps had
upon its face a different portrait or subject, with
a distinctive contrast In the colors. The only
change in denomination was the abandonment of
the 13-cent stamp. A complete list of the revised
designs follows : '
Franklin, lc.
Washington, 2c.
Lincoln, Sc.
Martha Washington, 4c.
Roosevelt, 5c.
Garfield, 6c.
McKinley, 7c.
Grant, 8c.
Jefferson, 9c.
Monroe, 10c.
Hayes, 11c.
Already nine of these new stamps have been
Issued and will be In general use as soon as the
old supply of stamps is exhausted at the various
post offices of the country. The other 12 designs
of the series are expected to be placed upon sale
within the next few months.
Evidently a great deal has been done to revive
the morale of the 340,000 workers and to improve
working conditions. State "personal-contact" con
ventions with an "open forum" ; a service relations
organization with 1,049 chapters from coast to
coast; free medical examination and vaccination;
rest rooms and cafeterias; reduction of night
work. Saturday half-holidays and "holiday holi
days" are among the Items set forth.
There have been appointed 9,891 postmasters
since March 4, 1921. Of this number 1.320 were
ex-service men, 1,611 were women, and 122 were
employees who were -promoted from the ranks
"without examination, the latter being an Innova
tion which enabled the department to reward mer
itorious service. 'There have been 11,069 fourth
class postmasters appointed also, making a total
of 20,900.
Haphazard handling of hotel mall addressed to
traveling public has been supplanted by new sys
tem.
Stamps have been ordered sold at registered
windows of post offices to end inconvenience to
the public.
Postmasters have been Instructed to participate
in civic affairs of their respective communities as
part of their duties. -
Extra-quality envelopes with superior grade of,
paper have been placed on sale to supply public
demand. t /
Box and refrigerator carsx were uustered Intoj
Service to handle immense volume of Christmas
mails.
Cost of 2,080,000 pounds of pap<?r purchased In
1922 reduced more than 15 per cent
Chief engineer of Post Office department ap
pointed to supervise mechanical equipment and
labor-saving devices.
Finger printing of all postal savings depositors
has been Introduced as precaution against defraud
ing post office clerks.
Early mail campaign has resulted in transfer
ring many postal workers from night to day work.
Purchase of paint for conducting tests in 10 dif
ferent cities results in saving time for two or three
days. -
Cleveland, 12c.
Indian Head, 14c.
Statue of Liberty, 15c.
Yosemlte Valley, 20c.
Niagara Falls, 25c.
Buffalo, 90c.
Arlington Amphitheater, 50c
Lincoln, |L _
United States Capitol, S2.
American Head, $5.
* ' ? . ? 'i I" . *
(Conducted by National, Council of tht Bof
Scouts of America.)
~ ... J
INDIAN BOY SCOUTS
- ? S" ?
"In the three troops at the Chemawa
Indian school, Chemaw%, Oregon, some
remarkably fine scouts are being de
veloped," says Scout Executive Zinser
of Salem, Oregon.
"Itemember, these boys come from
all the different tribes of the Pacific
Northwest and Alaska Some of them
have known no other environment thnn
a snow igloo and no other clothing
than garments of fur. Some have had
wide experience in the hunting and
fishing and with dog sledges of the
North. Others were born and reared
In the tepees of the Pacific Northwest
tribes, but after all they are making
scouts whom any troop would be proud
to call their own.
"This school has as its athletic di
rector and disciplinarian, George W.
Bent, who is a <lescendan^of a family
of chieftains of the Cheyenn* Indians.
He is a graduate of the Carlisle In
dian school. It was his intention to
organize scouting In the school after
he had spent a summer as camp di
rector for the Salem (Oregon) local
council. He first had to obtain the
consent of the Department of Indian I
4-ffairs at Washington. This was ob- '
tained, and he went about organizing
his troops.
"The school's superintendent who
has had a lifetime experience with In
dians is full of praise for the effect of
the scout oath and law on the lives of
these la(Js. The inspector for the De
partment of Indian Affairs expressed a
high appreciation of the "frork scouts
are doing,' his report tt> headquar
ters. These men are" convinced that
scouting Is playing a big part in the
lives of these boys, and that it is pro
ducing a lasting effect on the morals
and discipline of the school.
"At the last commencement week
exercises the scouts were given the re
sponslbility of parking fcnd guarding
the large number of visiting automo
biles. All the visitors were shown
through the Institution by Scout guides.
The lads took prominerf part in the
events of the week, including an after- I
noon of games, drills and scoutcraft.
"A recent "contest between the Salem
and the Ohemawa members proved the
efficiency of the Indian scouts. In the
majority of the events they had the
white bAys bested. Their thorough!
training was evident. As a group they]
sing many of the scout songs, and
their yelling is a good thing to listen
to. They also have their own band.
"Two of the troops are led by white
scoutmasters and one by an Indian."
CACTUS CENTER'S BOY SCOUT
Down her? In Cactus Center, boys is ai*
too seldom seen;
We're mostly cattle outfits, and our
schools is far between;
Bu^ a kid who spent tie winter down at
Pecos Johnson's place
? Makes us proud that we have met him?
durn his freckled, smllin' face!
It was when an Eastern party tried to
auto through this way
And they got lost in a sandstorm. They
wis gone for many a day *
'Fore our- outfit heard about It, but we
scattered when tfe knaw.
And this kid from Pecos Johnson's? well,
he sort of come <fn, ttxj.
We didn't take no notice when the kid
Just eased away
And i?oked off on the desert. We was
busy day by day
And we thought the search was hopeless,
when this little, dusty scamp
DTags the party, all but perished, to the
safety of our camp.
i
When we aisked him how he done it.
refused to answef much,
But we learned that this boy scouting
made him wise to beat the Dutch;
And, vhen it came to trnilin', where the
ground was rough snd wild,
He Just followed boy scout teach!n',
w hich is good fgr nAn or child.
Wheif we learned how he had tracked
'fem? how he chtered 'em night and
day
How he dug and tnrned up water? how
he found the shortest way? ?
Whan we learned these things about him,
you could gather from our shouts
That "O K." wks what \fe'd branded
this here outfit of boy scouts. 'l
?Arthur Chapman in Boy's Life.
HISTORIC COLORS PRESENTED 4
When the U. 8. S. Albany, a cruiser
whloh did service In the Spanish-Amer
ica o war and the most recent war ^ras
dismantled, the official colors of t be
ship were pat In the hands of the
mayor of Albany, N. Y. Mayor Hackett,
In his turn, In order that the colors
might be kept in a place where 'the
historical significance would be of
benefit to the community, conferred
their custody into the hands of the
seascout ship Hendrlck Hudson 1,
which is the oTricial seascout division
of Che Albany I>0y scouts.
TEXAS SCOUTS MAKE RECORD
At the recent South ^exas State
fair the scouts stood ready at all times
to help or render information. Among
other "good turns," the boys found
T2 lost children, handled six parades
as traffic officers, acted as4 runners for
officers of the association, furnished
escort for (!hildren during the baby
pArade, packed automobiles in the fair
grounds, met all incoming trains, and
maintained *n Information btreau oq
the post office corner.
CONDENSED NEWS
THE OLD NORTH
t "
SHORT NOTES OF |NT|f
CAROLINIANS.
Wadesboro? County ^
exercises were hH,t y,arf
cises Vere of unusual interest
portance and wer<> largely
The speech of the <hy Wa#
Dr. E. W. Sikes, of Hp.rtgv]
president of Coker Colioge
Winston-Salem.
Tbree
COS
passenger train Nmnher iq
North Carolina Midland ro?
Charlotte and bound f.,r Wj '
lem, jumped the track near d?
The only injuries Mistai^
bruises infected up< tw0
the train crew.
:i>: jn r':
?Jackson Springs
exercises of the local ;,:-h ^ '
begin here on Sun 'in. May git''1
a. m. with the serii.-.j, ,,r 1
Dr. C. O. Vardell, j,r. ^i(i..R, .
Macdonald College, at I'.j
The speaker for tin
been announced yet.
Elon College.? l-:i. ( t:r, ns ,
student council, ti,.. .
body for the women
college, occurrcd at ;i nia-s
of the young ladii-s. Mi.--. .\lir
er, of Morganton, X C U l< ,v
president, the highest oi'fu-,. v
gift of the student body.
Raleigh. ? A >^w York arehhJ
been ordered to design buae*
pected to cost approxirr.aMv i
,000 for North Carolin;i Stat f/^
was learned from O. Max f;ir^
member of the board of trusty
contracts for construction wiii
soon after the plans ar ? >u:,in;d
the 'board, it was state,;
Wadesboro. ? The colored anc;j
the Anfcon Sanatorium was bion
by the explosion of a boiler it
basement used in heating the
and windows and doors blown
Although theer were several
in the building none of the m wey^j
Jured.
Wilmington. ? The 1923 strd
crop of the Rocky Point section a]
be a very short one beeause
considerable damage done the #
and young berries by the untia
freeie of a few days age, accordiy
J. M. Turner, of this city, who open
a large truck farm at Castle
Jackson Springs.? Heavy rain?
brought ? halt to cotton plantir
much larger acreage will be p]
this year due to the almost comjig
failure of the peach crop. The imi
ca acreage will be increased a littiti
large per cent of the fruits was iiii
large per cent of the fruit was biltc|
Goldsboro. ? Charged by a coro
Jury with the murder of his fa:1
John E. Smith, 75, Dewey Smith Si
l^eld here in jail without bad. Ac:
lng to the young man's testimony!
killed his father because he had qa
reled with bis mother and refer
to her as an "old fool."
Charlotte. ? Molloy Friday and 5
lard Hall, arrested in Durham fori
murder of W. B. Peach, automobili
chanic, here, confessed to the era
when brought back to Charlotte
Officers W. ? W. M<?Graw and D.
Bradley, according to a statement J
Chief W. B. Orr, of the police dept'
ment. Friday, Chief Orr said, adaJ
ted firing the shot that killed Pea
Wilmington. ? An attempt to rd
the Bank of Council, at Council B^1
en county, was frustrated by Mrs *
G. Holmes, .who, attracted by a no*
in the rear of the bank buildiU
kashed a light In her home acr*
the street, frightening the robbers
The intruders broke open the out*
door of the building with axes stole
from a shanty, and battered the cc
er door of the heavy safe from is
hinges before they were frighten*
away. A time lock on the in?*
door protected the contents of ?
vault
Greensboro. ? John Dunn.
aged about 55 years, was instanti?
killed here near White Oak; when -?
was struck by southbound passenf
train number 45. He was walW
along the track when hit.
Davidson ? 'Having subscribed
5,000 to the Davidson College Ca8
paign Fund the senior class of PaV*' j
son has decided to dedicate their cM
room in the new Chambers building ^ I
Dr. J. M. McCouncll ase th mosetP0?'
ular professor in the senior class
Washington, N. C. ? Hancock
Davis, of Beaufort, were awarded ^
contract by the city board of scW J
trustees for the construction of ' '
white and colored school buildings '*?
a cost of $155,768.50, being the lo***
of all the bidders.
Whiteville. ? Strawberries ?n "
local market brpught $10.50 the crat*
rhe market is very strong and ^
movement is growing heavier.
lots are expected to begin movisf
north the coming week.
Mount Olive. ? Mack Brock, a *e
known Duplin farmer, living six
southeast of Mount Olive, died at V
home following an illness of st?u!^
days with pneumonia. Deceased **"
68 years old and is survived by ^
wife and four children.
Durham. ? Announcement has ^
made here by Mrs. Sallis F. Morg^
of Richmond, Va., of plans to ^
a memorial to cost $10,000 or mon3.*
the Bennett place within the near &
tnr?. Draftsmen are now at
drawing plans for the proposed
HorUl which will be one of the
b*?lI?om$ in th? stata.