With the carriage of the mails on the railroads a system was developed in connection therewith of handling important mails en route by the employment of route agents. Their duties included the assortment of the mails for the several offices and the delivery and reception of mail bags. All classes of mail are handled in accordance with their importance to the public but letters and daily newspapers are given preferred attention.
At the close of the fiscal year 1928 there were in operation
railway post office trains covering
m. of railroads; there were 13,340 closed pouch trains and 14,092 regular and acting railway postal clerks working in these railway post offices.
The employment of letter carriers at such offices as the postmaster general should direct for the delivery of letters upon the payment by the addressee of a fee of two cents on each letter delivered, was authorized in 1794• The delivery of news papers under like conditions on payment of a half-cent each was authorized in 1827. What was known as a "Penny Post" was in successful operation in several of the principal cities before 1859 but was unsatisfactory because of the competition of the "private expresses." This competition was ultimately disposed of under the prohibition of the Federal Statute. Free delivery in cities as distinguished from this service was inaugurated in 1863 under the Act of that year and the service in its present form was established at nine of the largest post offices. The service has had a great growth and is maintained at 2,899 cities and employs 51,293 carriers. Village delivery service was established at certain second and third class offices in 1912 and has had a substantial develop ment. At the present time it is in operation in 705 villages. Rural free delivery, a service by carriers to the rural inhabitants, was inaugurated as an experimental service in 1896. At the end of the fiscal year 1928 there were 44,168 rural carriers, serving approximately 7,141,792 families or 24,282,092 individuals on 44,288 rural routes. Approximately 17% of all mail originating in the country is ultimately delivered to the patrons on these routes. Service is generally daily, except Sunday.
The Act of 1792, the first after the adoption of the Constitution, recognized letters, packets and newspapers as mail matter. Magazines and pamphlets were recognized in 1799 and unbound journals of the several States in 1825. Lithographed circulars, handbills or advertisements and every other kind or description of printed or other matter were recognized as mail able in 1845. In 1851 bound books were made mailable. In 1852 the limit of weight on books was 4 pounds. In 1861 maps, en gravings, photographic prints, photographic paper, letter envel opes, cards, blanks, seeds and cuttings were made mailable and the weight limit was fixed at four pounds and the Act of 1863 excepted books circulated by order of Congress from the weight limit. Mail matter was classified in 1863 and again in 1872 into three classes. The postal card was authorized in the latter year. Mail matter was again reclassified in 1879 in four classes, namely, first class, written matter; second class, periodical publi cations; third class, miscellaneous printed matter; and fourth class, merchandise and matter consisting of that which is not in cluded in the other classes not in form or nature liable to injure the contents of the mail bag or harm those engaged in the postal service, and not exceeding four pounds in weight for each package.
By the Parcel Post Act of Aug. 24, 1912, the scope of fourth class matter was enlarged. Congress has vested in the Post Office department a monopoly in the conveyance of letters, but this monopoly does not extend to any other class of mail matter. During the fiscal year 1927 the number of pieces of all mail originating by classes was as follows: Revenues.—The use of postage stamps was inaugurated in 1847 and it is from this source that the revenues of the service are derived mainly. From all sources they amounted to $683, 121,988.66 for the fiscal year 1927. The expenses of the service are paid from the revenues and if these are insufficient the re mainder is paid from the U.S. Treasury. The audited expenditures for the fiscal year 1927 were
International Postal Service.—Postage rates on interna tional mails are regulated by the Universal Postal Convention and for the Pan American countries by the Pan American Postal Convention, to each of which the United States subscribes. Par cel post exchanges are made under separate conventions negotiated with other countries, excepting Pan American, in which case the United States subscribes to the General Parcel Post Convention.
Letters or parcels which cannot be de livered, from defect of address or other cause, are sent to the Division of dead letters and dead parcel post. They are carefully examined on both front and back for the name and address of the sender ; if these are found, they are returned to the sender. If the sender's address is lacking, they are kept for a period, after which dead letters are destroyed, while dead parcels are sold at auction.
The Postal Department is administered by the post master general, who is a member of the President's cabinet. He is assisted by four assistant postmasters general, an executive assistant, a solicitor, a comptroller, a chief inspector, a purchas ing agent, and a chief clerk, in the department at Washington, under whom deputy assistants and directors and superintendents of divisions supervise the work and the clerical forces. A special assistant to the attorney general, for the post office department, in charge of matters before the Interstate Commerce Commission ir_volving railroad mail pay, is also a part of the staff. In the field service the postmasters are in charge of the post offices and their services, including the rural delivery service. The railway mail service is supervised by the general superintendent at Wash ington and 15 division superintendents and their assistants and
chief clerks. The inspection service is supervised by the chief inspector at Washington and 15 inspectors-in-charge of divisions.
BIBLIOGRAPHY.-American State Papers—Post Office, 1789-4833; Journal Kept by Hugh Finley, Surveyor of Post Roads on the Continent of North America, 5773-5774 (1867) ; Mary E. Woolley, The Early History of the Colonial Post-Office (1894) ; W. E. Rich, History of the United States Post Office to the year 5829 (1924);