Foot-prints of a letter carrier; or, a history of the world's correspondece

by James Rees

It is not possible for the department to instruct an agent in the particular means to be employed in discovering the exact locality of an ascertained robbery of the mail, or in ferreting out and arresting the perpetrators. These must be as various as the circumstances which surround each case, and he must exercise his own ingenuity and acuteness to effect his purpose.

We have, probably, furnished our readers with sufficient information upon this peculiar branch of the postal department. A writer speaking upon this subject says,—

“From the nature of their employment, special agents are constantly brought in contact with the most intelligent and prominent men in the community, who justly expect to find the post-office department represented by men of gentlemanly bearing, fair education, correct deportment, and sound discretion. The absence of any of these qualities, especially of all of them, would lower the standing of the department with those whose good opinion is most valuable, and would naturally cause speculations on the reasons why persons so deficient in the qualities necessary to make them acceptable to people of discernment should have been appointed to such a responsible post.”

SPECIAL AGENT OF THE LETTER-CARRIERS’ DEPARTMENT.

Since the introduction of the free-delivery letter system the position of a carrier has become one of considerable importance, from the fact of his duties being not only doubled, but the amount of responsibility considerably increased. At first there was considerable opposition in some places to having carriers at all; and even in large cities postmasters opposed it, as a general thing. Mr. C. A. Walborn, postmaster of Philadelphia, was among the first to favor the abolishing the one-cent system, and the making four trips a day, instead of two, as heretofore. It is true, this added materially to the labor of a carrier, but by lessening the routes it was soon found as practicable as it was beneficial to the community. Perhaps no city in the Union can boast of a better-organized system of the carriers’ department than that of Philadelphia. Gradually, as merchants became aware of the facilities it afforded them, and the energetic movements and attention shown by the carriers to their interest, and of letters being delivered free of charge, they hailed the system as an important era in the postal department. In all large cities and populous towns the system became general, and four deliveries of a letter a day added materially to the confidence it had inspired.

In view of the importance attached to this department, Postmaster-General Montgomery Blair appointed Joseph W. Briggs, Esq., of Cleveland, Ohio, “special agent” to superintend the operations of the letter-carriers’ department throughout the United States. Mr. Briggs in every respect was qualified for the position. His acquaintance with postal matters, and the interest he took in the general delivery of letters, well qualified him to undertake the important duty. We met Mr. Briggs in the Philadelphia post-office, September, 1865, while on his postal tour; and it afforded us an opportunity of exchanging opinions upon the subject of the carriers’ system, in which he expressed himself in terms of one who had studied it with an eye to the interest both of the carriers and that of the department.

Apart from his special duties in large cities, he was authorized by the department to establish the system in all places requiring it: hence in a short time the having letters brought to our very doors, even in the rural districts, will become general.

Mr. Briggs goes into the philosophy of the subject: he calculates first the amount of labor a carrier has to perform in the office; secondly, the amount of physical labor required in the performance of his duty as a carrier of letters. Thus the mental and physical are properly inquired into, and their respective duties classified. The result of the latter, as calculated by Mr. Briggs, is as follows:—One hundred and twenty-eight carriers of the Philadelphia office travel daily 2652 miles,—being an average of over twenty-two miles per day each man. This is no sinecure!

Apart from this statement, the author of this work called the attention of the agent to an additional item in this calculation; and that was the travelling up several pair of stairs, passing through long corridors and galleries of large public and other buildings, to deliver letters to the several occupants, would make up an additional mile or two to the above statistic of figures. Perhaps one good result will arise from the report which Mr. Briggs has made to the department; and that will be to increase the number of carriers, and add some twenty-five per cent. to their salaries.