CONTENTS.

REPORT OF POSTMASTER-GENERAL

Financial summary, 3; revenue, 5; expenditures, 7; work of First Assistant's Office sum.

marized, 9; renewal of postmasters' bonds, 9; free-delivery statistics, 10; division of

post-office supplies, 11; salary and allowance division, 11; work of and allowances in,

12; expenditures of Second Assistant's office for railway-mail and transportation, 13;

for steamboat service, 15; for star routes, 15; for mail-messenger service, 16; fines and

deductions and remissions of same, 16; railway mail service, increase of, &c., 16; for-

eign mail service, facts and statistics as to, 18; receipts therefrom, 20; expenses of, 20;

Universal Postal Union, congress of, 21; extension of, by conventions, 21; Third As.

sistant's report summarized, 23, and statistics of, given, 24; money-order system, sta-

tistics of, summarized, 25; Chief Inspector's report summarized, 26; postmasters'

claims for losses by fire, burglary, &c., 27; the current fiscal year, estimate for, dis-

cussed, 29; special-delivery service, 32; foreign mails, negotiations with steamship

lines, &c., 35; additional departmental building recommended, 47; estimate for next

fiscal year, 48; general topics, and recommendations, 49; the taxation to support postal

service discussed, 49; carrier-delivery service, should be extended, 52; collection deliv

ery service recommended, 54; other local improvements mentioned and suggested, 54;

railroad transportation of the mails, 55; money-order service, reduction of fees rec-
ommended, suggestion as to clerk hire for, &c., 55; post-office leases, recommenda-
tion as to, 56; abuse of the mails by "frauds," &c., 56; insurance system for railway
postal clerks recommended, 58; legislation as to hotel mail suggested, 59; as to return
of undelivered postal cards, 60; as to protection of postmasters from combinations to
deprive them of their compensation, 60; as to disallowed claims of postmasters for sta-
tionery, 60; limitation on claims for readjustment of salaries of postmasters, 61; post-
office supplies, extension of, system of furnishing suggested, 61; departmental changes
recommended, 61; dead-letter office, creation of, as independent bureau, 62; finance
division, salary of chief, increase of, 62; acknowledgments to subordinate officials,
&c., 62.

APPENDIX A.-Report of commission to investigate division of post-office supplies, 65;

organization of division, 78; recommendations as to same, 79.

APPENDIX B.-Tables exhibiting the business of the lines indicated in transporting United

States mails

Page.

3-53

84

APPENDIX C.-Opinion of Attorney-General as to contracts for foreign mail service..

APPENDIX D.-Correspondence relating to foreign-mail transportation....

99

APPENDIX E.-Letter of Hon. Montgomery Blair, March 3, 1862, recommending "compul.

sory law"

100-150

150

151

APPENDIX F.-Lease of Marini Hall

APPENDIX G.-Table of postal stations and post-offices leased, 156, and salary, allowance

for box rents and commissions, surplus, deficiency, &c., 157; postal stations leased, 164.

ESTIMATES FOR POSTAL SERVICE FOR FISCAL YEAR ENDING JUNE 30, 1887:

For office of Postmaster-General, 167-176; for office of First Assistant, 177-184; for com-

pensation of postmasters, 177; for clerks in post-offices, 178; for rent, light, and fuel,

179; for office furniture, 180; for miscellaneous and incidental items, ; for free-

delivery service, 181; for stationery in post-offices, 181; for wrapping twine, 182; for

wrapping paper, 182; for letter-balances, scales, and test-weights, 183; for post-mark-

ing, rating, and canceling stamps, and ink and pads for canceling purposes, 183:

summary of estimates, 184; estimates for Second Assistant's office, 184; for star routes,

184; for steamboat routes, 185; for mail-messenger service, 185; for mail bags, mail-bag

catchers, mail-bag locks and keys, 186; for railroad transportation of mails, 186; for railway

post-office cars, 187; for railway post-office clerks, 187; for special facilities, 187; estimates

for Third Assistant's office, 18; for adhesive postage and special-delivery stamps, 190;

for stamped envelopes, newspaper wrappers, and letter sheets, 190; for postal cards,

191; for registered-package, tag, and dead-letter envelopes, 192; for ship, steamboat,

and way letters, 193; for engraving, printing, and binding drafts and warrants, 193;

miscellaneous, 193; recapitulation, 194; saving by new contracts, 195; estimates for

transportation of foreign mails, 196; estimates for money-order business, 198; for

topographer's office, 198.

REPORT OF THE FIRST ASSISTANT POSTMASTER-GENERAL

Appointment of postmasters and establishment and discontinuance of offices during year,

203; bond division, 205; the free delivery system, 207; postage on local matter, 207;

consolidation of offices, 208; division of post-office supplies, 208; stationery for first and

second-class offices, 209; printing, binding, &c., for the Department, 210; postmarking,

rating, and canceling stamps and canceling ink, 210; facing slips, 211; division of cor-

respondence, 211; salary and allowance division and duties of same, 212; operations of

same for year, 213; operations of same for last five years, statement, 215; review of sal-

aries under act of March 3, 1883, 217; statement of same, 218, 219; box rents, 219; key

deposits, 220; estimates of salaries of Presidential postmasters, 220; for compensation to

postmasters, 221; for clerks in post-offices, 222; for rent, light, and fuel, 223; for office

furniture, 224; for miscellaneous and incidental items, 224; for advertising, 225; recapit-

ulation of estimates, 225; legislation recommended, 225; allowances for third-class offices

as to money-order clerk hire, 226; as to limitation of application for review of post-

master's salaries, 227; rent of stations in Washington, D. C., post-office, 227; stationery

claims of postmaters disallowed, 227.

TABLE A.-Statement of number of Presidential post-offices, also of each class, and money-

order offices, &c

TABLE B.-Operations of appointment division

TABLE C.-Aggregate result of free-delivery service for year....

TABLE D.-Growth of free-delivery service.

TABLE E.-Number of carriers and amount of mail handled, cost, &c

REPORT OF THE SECOND ASSISTANT POSTMASTER-GENERAL...

General statement of cost of inland mail transportation, 241; unadjusted railroad service,

242; star service, 243; steamboat service, 246; inland and foreign steamboat service,

247; mail-messenger service, 248; mail equipments, 248; fines and deductions, 249;

railroad transportation, 249; requirements for the current year, 251; estimates for 1887,

railway postal cars, 252; postal clerks, 252; special facilities, 253.

Addendum: Contracts for fast-mail service....

Page.

203-237

229

230

231

231

232-237

238

254

TABLE A.-Inland mail service for year, cost, appropriations, estimates, rates of increase

and decrease....

259

TABLE B.-Inland service in operation June 30, 1885

260

TABLE C.-Railroad service in operation June 30, 1885

TABLE D.-Steamboat service in operation June 30, 1885

262

329

TABLE E.-Showing increase and decrease in mail transportation and cost during the year

ended June 30, 1885..

336

TABLE F.-Division of inspection, contract bureau, deductions, fines, and remissions for

year ended June 30, 1885...

338

TABLE H.-Showing readjustment of the rates of pay per mile on railroad routes, &c......

TABLE I.-Showing rate of pay per annum for railway post-office cars for fiscal years ending

June 30, 1884 and 1885..

340

400

TABLE K.-Statement of expenditures for special facilities

TABLE L.-Statement of miles of railroad mail service ordered from July 1, 1884, to June
30, 1885

401

402

TABLE M-Statistics of increase of mileage and cost of railway service

TABLE O.--Statement of mail bags, &c., purchased, expenses..

406

408

411

REPORT OF THE GENERAL SUPERINTENDENT OF THE RAILWAY MAIL SERVICE..

Railway post-office lines, 413; steamboat mail service, 413; closed-pouch service, 413; com-

parative statement from 1830 to 1835, 414; mail distributed, &c., 414; errors made by

post-offices, 415; case examinations, 415; mileage, 415; new service, &c., 416; casualties,

416; separation for city delivery, 416; special facilities, 417; explanation for estimate

for postal cars, 418; same, for pay of postal clerks, 418; chief clerks, 419; fast mail,

420; civil service, 421; recommendations as to tenure, &c., of employés, 423.

TABLE A-Statement of railway post-offices in operation in United States June 30, 1885.. 424-515

TABLE B.-Statement of steamboat mail service with postal clerks in operation June 30,

1855

516-522

TABLE C.-Statement of mail service performed in closed pouches upon railroads and parts

of railroads over which no railroad post-offices run, during the year ended June 30,

1885..

524

TABLE Dd.-Comparative statement of railway mail service, 1830 to 1885.

577

TABLE F-Statement of errors made by postal clerks during fiscal year ended June 30,

TABLE E.-Statement of mail distributed en route on the cars, railway postal clerks, dur-

ing fiscal year ended June 30, 1885

578

578

1885.

TABLE G5.—Statement of errors in distribution and forwarding of mails by post-offices dur-

ing fiscal year ended June 30, 1885..

578

Page.

REPORT OF THE GENERAL SUPERINTENDENT of the RAILWAY MAIL SERVICE-Continued.

TABLE H.-Statement of case estimations of permanent railway postal clerks for fiscal year

ended June 30, 1885

587

TABLE I.-Statement of case examination of postal clerks during probation for fiscal year

ended June 30, 1885

588

TABLE K.--Statement, by divisions, of average daily miles run...

589

TABLE L.-Statement of new service established and service extended during fiscal year

ended June 30, 1885

608

TABLE M-Statement of annual salaries of railway postal clerks by classes

615

Statement of separation of mail for Philadelphia city delivery for fiscal year ended June 30,

638

Statement of leaves of absence with pay granted to railway postal clerks injured while on

duty, together with amount paid acting clerks during fiscal year ended June 30, 1885..

REPORT OF THIRD ASSISTANT POSTMASTER-GENERAL

Papers of, summarized, 641; division of files, records, and mails, 642; division of finance,

642; expenditures, appropriations, and estimates for service of this office, 644; general

financial exhibits for 1885, 645; details of receipts and expenditures. 646; suspense

account and bad debts, 647; amount drawn from Treasury, 647; resources for 1885, 648;

transactions at Treasury depositories, 649; revenue exhibits and estimates, 649; special-

delivery system, 650; increase in unit of weight of first-class matter, 658; statistics

and deductions as to effect of same, 659; reduction of postage on second-class matter, 663;

statistics as to effect of same, 664; revenues of the past, 666; official postage-stamps

and stamped envelopes, amount of same used, 666, 667; gross receipts of postal service,

668; ordinary postal revenue, 669; tables showing same, 670; the postal revenue as an

indicator of private business, 672; the panic of 1873, its effect on revenue, 672; the

effect of change of law and regulation as to third-class matter, 676; comparative state-

ment from 1879 to 1882, 678; depression of business, 678; revenue under 2-cent post-

age, 679; general conclusions, 680; results of 2-cent postage, 681; past reductions of

postage, effect of, 682; revenue at large offices since June 30, 1885, 683; estimated gross

revenue for fiscal year, 685; estimated gross revenue for year ending June 30, 1887, esti-

mated deficiency of revenue, 685; division of postage-stamps, stamped envelopes, and

postal cards, 686; postage on second-class matter, 687; one-cent and periodical stamp,

688; special-delivery stamp, 888; new design of postal card, 689; review of new con-

tracts, 689; new contract for adhesive stamps, 689; contract for postal cards, 693; new

contract for registered-package and official envelopes, 695; special features of new

contracts, 699; comparison of number, value, and cost of supplies, 701; losses, 704;

inner registered-sack exchanges, 705; manifold coupon bills for through registered

pouches, 705; reorganization of registry divisions in larger post-offices, 706; the inter-

national through registered pouch system, 706; general features of registration, 707;

dead-letter office, 709; matter opened in, 710; disposal of same, 711; decrease in number

of held-for-postage letters, 712; independent bureau of dead letters recommended, 713;

facts relating to revenue in November, 1885, affecting estimates, 713.

EXHIBIT NO. 1.-Estimates explained

639

715

EXHIBIT NO. 2.-Statement showing appropriations and expenditures for the year ended

June 30, 1885.

723

EXHIBIT NO. 3.-Statement exhibiting the receipts and expenditures for fiscal year ending

June 30, 1885, as compared with previous fiscal year.

724

EXHIBIT NO. 4.-Receipts and disbursements at Treasury depositories during fiscal year

ending June 30, 1885

726

EXHIBIT NO. 5.-Issues of stamps, stamped envelopes, newspaper wrappers, and postal

cards during fiscal year

730

EXHIBIT NO. 6.-Same by denomination for fiscal year ended June 30, 1885..

EXHIBIT NO. 7.-Table showing increase and decrease in the issue of postage-stamps,
stamped envelopes, newspaper wrappers, and postal cards for fiscal year ended June
30, 1885..

732

EXHIBIT NO. 8.-Number of registered letters and parcels transmitted through the mails

from each State and Territory in the United States during the fiscal year ended June

30, 1885.

733

734