Democratic Sentinel, Volume 8, Number 43, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 21 November 1884 — THE POSTOFFICE. [ARTICLE]

THE POSTOFFICE.

Estimates of the Expedi tores of the Postal Service for the Fiscal Year. The following im a synopsis es the work performed and the cost of service in the Northwestern free-delivery posteffioes for the fiscal year ending Jane 30, 1884; Local Pieces Cost of Car- postage o handled, service, riers. ooU'ted. Bay City, Mich... 1,357,932 SM7» 6 $2,873 Bloomington, HI. 2,631,178 6.06 S I 2,294 Burlington, la 4,187,411 6.531 T 4,631 Ceda Rapids, la. 859,417 3,095 4 2,066 thicago. 111, 162,561,805 261,044 277 403,139 Conucll Bluffs... 1,184,604 4,309 6 vs 24 Davenport 1a.... 3,239,458 7,664 9 2,133 Des Moines, 1a... 6,003,039 10,074 12 6,543 Detroit, Mich..,. 19,669,706 39,427 44 35.278 Dubuque, lowa.. 2,818,131 6,364 f 2,185 E.Saginaw, Mich. .2,123.038 4,641 6 2,575 EVSnsville, Ind.. 4,031,019 8,136 10 2,094 Galesburg, 111.... 1,349,140 3,48 1 6 1.128 G d Rapids. Mich. 8,416,132 11,591 14 12,170 Indianapolis. Ind 13,133,012 32,503 33 16,213 Jackson, Mich... 2,466,481 6,311 6 1,716 Lafayette, Ind... 1,765,096 4,887 6 1,534 Minneapolis Min. 8,354,406 21,70# 28 n. 970 Omaha Neb..... 6,843,681 11,30# 14 11,226 Oshkosh, Wis.... 1,068,185 4,831 6 1,284 Peoria, 11l .... 3,246,551 8,737 10 2,773 Madison, Wis.... 1,3»6.230 3,514 6 1,015 Milwaukee, Wis.. 17,452,224 37,447 4h 87,334 Quincy 11l 3,215,706 7,34# 0 2,411 Racine, Wis 1,328,294 4,278 6 1,040 Richmond, Ind... 2,059,741 6,277 7 2.338 Lansing Mich... 691,701 3,224 4 1,725 Rockford, 111.... 4,364,850 5,335 7 2,625 St. Paul, Minn... 10,725,970 21,408 28 15,556 South Bend, Ind. 1,783,416 4,580 6 1.134 Springfield, 111... 3,397,837 7,153 9 2,009 Terre H>aute, Ind. 3,448,823 6,884 9 3,011 Ottumwa, lowa.. 1.044,036 2,770 4 ,934 Kalamazoo, Mich. 1,762,868 3.943 6 IWI4 Keokuk, 10wa.... 2,058,422 4,156 6 2.568 Estimates of expenditures in the postal service for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1885, are S 3 follows: Office of the Postmaster-General $271,500 Office of the First-Assistant Post-master-General (tne principal items are: For pay of Postmasters, $13,000,000; pay-clerks in Pqstofficee, $5,300,000; free-delivery and lettercarriers. $4,535,000) 23,695,000 Office of the Second-Assistant Post-master-General (the principal items being: railroad transportation, $15,684,205; star routes, $5,900,0t)0; railway postal-car service. $1,875,000; pay railway postal clerks, $4,682,300) 30,294,26$ Office of the Third-Assistant Post-master-General 1,338,400 Office of the Superintendent of Foreign Mails 600,000 Total... $56,099,169 The estimated amount to be provided, by the department from its own revenues (including $400,000 from the money-order service) is $51,273,230. The estimated excess of expenditures to be appropriated out of the General Treasury to supply the deficiency iu the postal revenue is $4,825,539, The total appropriations of the present year are $49,040,400. or $7,058,709 less than the amount estimated as being necessary for the next fiscal year. The principal items of increase are; Compensation to Postmasters, $2,000,000; clerks in posto Dices, $400,000; free-delivery system, $535,000; railroad ransportation, $2,934,000 (which includes compensation to the Pacific Railroads which heretofore have been certified to by the Secretary of the Treasury); and pay of railway postal clerks, $382,300. The financial offieers of the department say that certain items included in the estimates of the press ent fiscal year—such as compensation tol Postmasters and railroad transportation—l the amounts of which are arbitrarily fixed! by law, were reduced by Congress in the! postoffico appropriation bill tef the extent! of sevoral million dollars, thus making the! apparent difference between the appropria-l tions for the present year and the estimate™ for next year considerably larger than isl would bo under normal circumstances. 1