Chapter 2513. Making appropriations for the service of the Post-Office Department for the fiscal year ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and eight, and for other purposes
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CHAP. 2513.— An Act Making appropriations for the service of the Post-Office Department for the fiscal year ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and eight, and for other purposes. March 2, 1907. [[H. R. 25483](/us/bill/34/hr/25483).] [[Public, No. 172](/us/pl/34/172).] *Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of America in Congress assembled*, That the following sums be,Postal service appropriations.Vol. 5, p. 80. and they are hereby, appropriated for the service of the Post-Office Department, in conformity with the Act of July second, eighteen hundred and thirty-six, as follows: office of the postmaster-general.Postmaster-General.
For advertising, five thousand dollars.Advertising. Salaries of post-office inspectors: For salaries of fifteen inspectorsPost-office inspectors.Salaries. in charge of divisions, at three thousand dollars each; ten inspectors, at two thousand four hundred dollars each; fifteen inspectors, at two thousand two hundred and fifty dollars each; fifteen inspectors, at two thousand dollars each; ten inspectors, at one thousand eight hundred dollars each; one hundred and thirty inspectors, at one thousand six hundred dollars each; one hundred and ten inspectors, at one thousand four hundred dollars each; and seventy- two inspectors, at one thousand two hundred dollars each; in all, five hundred and ninety-nine thousand one hundred and fifty dollars.
For per diem allowance of inspectors in the field while actuallyPer diem. traveling on official business away from their home, their official domicile, and their headquarters, at a rate to be fixed by the Postmaster- General, not to exceed four dollars per day, three hundred and fifty thousand dollars: *Provided*, That the Postmaster-General may, in his*Provisos*.Temporary allowances. discretion, allow inspectors per diem while temporarily located at any place on business away from their home, or their designated domicile, for a period not exceeding twenty consecutive days at any one place, and make rules and regulations governing the foregoing provisions relating to per diem: *And provided further*, That no per diem shall beLimit. paid to inspectors receiving annual salaries of two thousand dollars or more.
For compensation to clerks and laborers at division headquarters,Clerks, etc., at division headquarters. fifteen, at one thousand six hundred dollars each; nine, at one thousand four hundred dollars each; twenty-seven, at one thousand two hundred dollars each: eight, at one thousand one hundred dollars each; thirteen, at one thousand dollars each; five, at nine hundred dollars each; and two. at six hundred and sixty dollars each; in all, ninety- six thousand six hundred and twenty dollars.
For traveling expenses of inspectors without per diem allowance,Traveling, etc., expenses. inspectors in charge, and the chief post-office inspector, and expenses incurred by inspectors not covered by per diem allowance, twenty-five thousand dollars. For livery hire incurred by inspectors not covered by their per diemLivery hire. allowance, including livery hire in connection with the installation and inspection of rural routes, sixty thousand dollars. For necessary miscellaneous expenses at division headquarters, sixMiscellaneous. thousand dollars.
For payment of rewards for the detection, arrest, and conviction ofRewards, etc. post-office burglars, robbers, and highway mail robbers, twenty thousand dollars: *Provided*, That of the amount herein appropriated not*Proviso*.Obtaining information, etc. to exceed two thousand dollars may be expended, in the discretion of the Postmaster-General, for the purpose of securing information concerning violations of the postal laws, and for services and information looking toward the apprehension of criminals.
To complete the work of printing and binding the opinions of assistantOpinions, Assistant Attorney-General. attorneys-general for the Post-Office Department, ten thousand dollars, 1206and such printing and binding shall be done at the Government Printing Office. Travel, etc.For travel and miscellaneous expenses in the postal service, office of the Postmaster-General, one thousand dollars. Cleric to sign warrants etc.That hereafter the Postmaster-General may from time to time designate any employee in the office of the Third Assistant Postmaster- General above the grade of a clerk of Class E to sign warrants, collection and transfer drafts in his stead, and such warrants and drafts when so signed shall be of the same validity as if signed by the Postmaster-General. office of the first assistant postmaster-general.First Assistant Postmaster-General.
Postmasters.For compensation to postmasters, twenty-five million five hundred thousand dollars. Assistant postmasters.For compensation to assistant postmasters at first and second class post-offices, two, at four thousand dollars each; twenty-seven, at three thousand dollars each; six, at two thousand five hundred dollars each; five, at two thousand dollars each; twelve, at one thousand nine hundred dollars each; twenty, at one thousand eight hundred dollars each; sixty, at one thousand seven hundred dollars each; one hundred, at one thousand six hundred dollars each; one hundred and twenty, at one thousand five hundred dollars each; one hundred and five, at one thousand four hundred dollars each; two hundred and forty, at one thousand three hundred dollars each; three hundred and seventy, at one thousand two hundred dollars each: three hundred and sixty, at one thousand one hundred dollars each; two hundred and seventy, at one thousand dollars each; seventy, at nine hundred dollars each; sixty, at eight hundred dollars each; and sixty, at seven hundred dollars each; in all, two million two hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars.
Clerks and carriers, graded.That after June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and seven, clerks in offices of the first and second class and carriers in the city delivery service shall be divided into six grades, as follows: First grade, salary six hundred dollars; second grade, salary eight hundred dollars; third grade, salary nine hundred dollars; fourth grade, salary one thousand dollars; fifth grade, salary one thousand one hundred dollars; sixth First-class offices.grade, salary one thousand two hundred dollars.
Clerks and carriers at first-class offices shall be promoted successively to the fifth grade, Second-class offices.and clerks and carriers at second-class offices shall be promoted successively to the fourth grade. Promotions.That after June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and seven, all promotions of both clerks and carriers shall be made at the beginning of the quarter following the expiration of a year’s service in the next lower grade. Efficiency evidence.No promotion shall be made except upon evidence satisfactory to the Post-Office Department of the efficiency and faithfulness of the Reductions.employee during the preceding year.
The Post-Office Department may reduce a clerk or carrier from a higher to a lower grade whenever his efficiency falls below a fair standard or whenever necessary for purposes Restoration, etc.of discipline. When a clerk or carrier has been reduced in salary he may be restored to his former grade or advanced to an intermediate grade at the beginning of any quarter following the reduction, on evidence that his record has been satisfactory during the intervening period. When a clerk or carrier fails of promotion because of unsatisfactory service he may be promoted at the beginning of the second quarter thereafter, or of any subsequent quarter, on evidence that his record has been satisfactory during the intervening period.
Clerks Higher positions.and carriers of the highest grade in their respective offices shall be eligible for promotion to the higher positions in said post-offices. Transfers, carriers and clerks.That after June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and seven, any clerk shall be eligible for transfer to the service of a carrier, and any carrier 1207shall be eligible for transfer to the service of a clerk, such transfer to be made to any grade not higher than the corresponding grade of salary, and the time which such clerk or carrier shall have served in the grade from which such transfer was made shall be counted in connection with the service to which such transfer may be made in computing the time of service necessary to entitle such employees to promotion: *Provided*, That no clerk or carrier shall be promoted more*Provisos*.Limit.Present carriers. than one grade within any one year’s period of service: *Provided*,* however*, That the carriers who on June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and seven, are regularly employed at a salary of eight hundred dollars per annum, shall be promoted to the fourth grade upon evidence satisfactory to the Post-Office Department of the efficiency and faithfulness of the employee during at least one year’s service.
That after June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and seven, auxiliaryAuxiliary employees employees may be employed to be paid for actual service at the rate of thirty cents an hour: *Provided*, That such employees shall be required*Provisos*.Hours of work. to work not less than two hours daily, and may serve as substitutes: *And provided further*, That such employees shall be eligible forEligibility. appointment as clerks and carriers of the first grade. That after June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and seven, substitutesSubstitutes. may be employed to be paid at the rate of thirty cents an hour when serving for absent clerks and carriers: *Provided*, That such substitutes*Proviso*.Eligibility. shall be eligible for appointment as auxiliary employees and as clerks and carriers of the first grade.
For compensation to clerks and employees at first and second classSuperintendents clerks, etc. post-offices: Superintendents of delivery, superintendents of mails, superintendentsAt $3,200. of money order, and superintendents of registry, eight, at not exceeding three thousand two hundred dollars each; Auditors, two, at not exceeding three thousand dollars each;At $3,000. Superintendents of delivery and superintendents of mails, twenty-three,At $2,700. at not exceeding two thousand seven hundred dollars each;
Cashiers, superintendents of delivery, and superintendents of mails,At $2,600. nineteen, at not exceeding two thousand six hundred dollars each; Superintendents of delivery, superintendents of mails, and superintendentsAt $2,500. of stations, six, at not exceeding two thousand five hundred dollars each; Assistant superintendents of delivery, assistant superintendents ofAt $2,400. mails, assistant superintendents of money order, assistant superintendents of registry, bookkeepers, cashiers, finance clerks, private secretaries, superintendents of delivery, superintendents of mails, superintendents of money order, and superintendents of registry, thirty-six, at not exceeding two thousand four hundred dollars each;
Assistant superintendents of mails, bookkeepers, cashiers, chiefAt $2,200. mailing clerks, chief stamp clerks, finance clerks, superintendents of delivery, superintendents of mails, superintendents of money order, superintendents of registry, and superintendents of stations, twenty- three, at not exceeding two thousand two hundred dollars each; Chief stamp clerks, night superintendents, superintendents of carriers,At $2,100. superintendents of delivery, superintendents of inquiry, superintendents of mails, superintendents of money order, and superintendents of registry, twenty-one, at not exceeding two thousand one hundred dollars each;
Assistant cashiers, assistant superintendents of delivery, assistantAt $2,000. superintendents of mails, assistant superintendents of money order, assistant superintendents of registry, bookkeepers, cashiers, examiners of stations, finance clerks, superintendents of carriers, superintendents of delivery, superintendents of mails, superintendents of money order, superintendents of registry, superintendents of second-class matter, superintendents of inquiry, and superintendents of stations, eighty-five, at not exceeding two thousand dollars each; 1208 At $1,800.Assistant cashiers, assistant superintendents of delivery, assistant superintendents of mails, assistant superintendents of money order, assistant superintendents of registry, assistant superintendents of stations, bookkeepers, cashiers, chief mailing clerks, chief stamp clerks, examiners of stations, finance clerks, private secretaries, superintendents of carriers, superintendents of delivery, superintendents of mails, superintendents of money order, superintendents of registry, superintendents of second-class matter, and superintendents of stations, sixty, at not exceeding one thousand eight hundred dollars each;
At $1,700.Assistant cashiers, assistant superintendents of delivery, assistant superintendents of mails, assistant superintendents of money order, assistant superintendents of registry, assistant superintendents of stations, bookkeepers, cashiers, chief mailing clerks, chief stamp clerks, examiners of stations, finance clerks, private secretaries, superintendents of carriers, superintendents of delivery, superintendents of mails, superintendents of money order, superintendents of registry, superintendents of second-class matter, and superintendents of stations, one hundred and eighteen, at not exceeding one thousand seven hundred dollars each:
At $1,600.Assistant cashiers, assistant superintendents of delivery, assistant superintendents of mails, assistant superintendents of money order, assistant superintendents of registry, assistant superintendents of stations, bookkeepers, cashiers, chief mailing clerks, chief stamp clerks, examiners of stations, finance clerks, foremen of crews, private secretaries, superintendents of carriers, superintendents of delivery, superintendents of mails, superintendents of money order, superintendents of registry, superintendents of second-class matter, and superintendents of stations, one hundred and five, at not exceeding one thousand six hundred dollars each;
At $1,500.Assistant cashiers, assistant superintendents of delivery, assistant superintendents of mails, assistant superintendents of money order, assistant superintendents of registry, assistant superintendents of stations, bookkeepers, cashiers, chief mailing clerks, chief stamp clerks, examiners of stations, finance clerks, foremen of crews, private secretaries, superintendents of carriers, superintendents of delivery, superintendents of mails, superintendents of money order, superintendents of registry, superintendents of second-class matter, and superintendents of stations, one hundred and twenty-two, at not exceeding one thousand five hundred dollars each;
At $1.400.Assistant cashiers, assistant superintendents of delivery, assistant superintendents of mails, assistant superintendents of money order, assistant superintendents of registry, assistant superintendents of stations, bookkeepers, cashiers, chief mailing clerks, chief stamp clerks, special clerks, examiners of stations, finance clerks, foremen of crews, private secretaries, superintendents of carriers, superintendents of delivery, superintendents of mails, superintendents of money order, superintendents of registry, superintendents of second-class matter, and superintendents of stations, three hundred and sixty-nine, at not exceeding one thousand four hundred dollars each;
At $1,300.Assistant cashiers, superintendents of delivery, assistant superintendents of money order, assistant superintendents of mails, assistant superintendents of registry, assistant superintendents of stations, bookkeepers, cashiers, chief mailing clerks, chief stamp clerks, special clerks, finance clerks, foremen of crews, private secretaries, superintendents of carriers, superintendents of delivery, superintendents of mails, superintendents of money order, superintendents of registry, superintendents of second-class matter, and superintendents of stations, six hundred and six, at not exceeding one thousand three hundred dollars each;
At $1,200.Assistant cashiers, assistant superintendents of delivery, assistant superintendents of mails, assistant superintendents of money order, 1209assistant superintendents of registry, assistant superintendents of stations, bookkeepers, chief stamp clerks, clerks, finance clerks, foremen of crews, printers, private secretaries, superintendents of carriers, superintendents of second-class matter, superintendents of stations, and machinist, two thousand four hundred and ninety-eight, at not exceeding one thousand two hundred dollars each;
Assistant superintendents of stations, clerks, printers, private secretaries,At $1,100. superintendents of carriers, superintendents of second-class matter, and superintendents of stations, three thousand one hundred and eight, at not exceeding one thousand one hundred dollars each; Assistant superintendents of stations, clerks, clerks in charge ofAt $1,000. stations, printers, private secretaries, superintendents of carriers, and superintendents of second-class matter, three thousand nine hundred and fifty-two, at not exceeding one thousand dollars each;
Carpenters, clerks, clerks in charge of stations, pressmen, printers,At $900. private secretaries, and oilers, five thousand three hundred and seventy- two. at not exceeding nine hundred dollars each: Carpenters, clerks, clerks in charge of stations, and pressmen, sevenAt $800. thousand six hundred and eight, at not exceeding eight hundred dollars each; Carpenters, janitors, laborers, messengers, porters, pressmen, andAt $700. watchmen, four hundred and eighty, at not exceeding seven hundred dollars each;
Carpenters, clerks, clerks in charge of stations, janitors, laborers,At $600. messengers, porters, pressmen, and watchmen, four thousand six hundred, at not exceeding six hundred dollars each: *Provided*, That six*Proviso*.Part immediately available. hundred of the additional clerks of this grade and the sum of one hundred and twenty thousand dollars shall be immediately available; Clerks in charge of stations, janitors, laborers, messengers, porters,At $500. and watchmen, one hundred, at not exceeding five hundred dollars each;
Clerks in charge of stations, janitors, laborers, messengers, porters,At $400. and watchmen, fifty, at not exceeding four hundred dollars each; Substitutes for clerks and employees absent without pay;Substitutes. Clerks in charge of contract stations, at a rate of compensationContract station clerks. above three hundred dollars each, and not to exceed one thousand dollars each, two hundred and thirty-five thousand dollars; Clerks in charge of contract stations, at a rate of compensation notAt $300. to exceed three hundred dollars each, five hundred and fifteen thousand dollars;
In all, twenty-six million three hundred and ninety thousand two hundred dollars. And the appointment and assignment of clerks hereunder shall beRestriction. so made during the fiscal year as not to involve a greater aggregate expenditure than this sum, and the assignment of the several grades of compensation to the various offices shall be made, so far as practicable, in proportion to the amount of business transacted through such offices and the respective divisions thereof.
For compensation to substitutes for clerks and employees at first andSubstitutes for clerks on leave. second class post-offices on vacation, one hundred thousand dollars. For temporary and auxiliary clerk hire at first and second classTemporary and auxiliary clerks. post-offices, including temporary and auxiliary clerk hire at summer and winter resorts, two hundred thousand dollars. For separating mails at third and fourth class post-offices, sevenSeparating mails. hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars.
For unusual conditions at post-offices, one hundred thousand dollars.Unusual conditions.Clerks, third-class offices.*Proviso*.Allotments. For allowance to third-class post-offices, to cover the cost of clerical services, eight hundred thousand dollars: *Provided*, That no allowance in excess of two hundred dollars shall be made where the salary of the postmaster is one thousand dollars, one thousand one hundred dollars, or one thousand two hundred dollars; nor in excess of three hundred dollars where the salary of the postmaster is one thousand three 1210hundred dollars, one thousand four hundred dollars, or one thousand five hundred dollars; nor in excess of four hundred dollars where the salary of the postmaster is one thousand six hundred dollars or one thousand seven hundred dollars; nor in excess of five hundred dollars where the salary of the postmaster is one thousand eight hundred dollars or one thousand nine hundred dollars.
New York.Preparation of plans, new building.Vol. 33, p. 434.For the commencement of the preparation of plans for a suitable building for a post-office, to be constructed on property now owned by the United States in the city of New York, known as the Pennsylvania Railroad site, and for the construction of the foundations for said building, one hundred thousand dollars, or so much thereof as may be necessary, to be paid out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, and not from or chargeable to the revenues of the postal service: *Proviso*.Supervision. *Provided*, That said plans shall be prepared and the work of constructing the foundations herein authorized shall be performed under the direction of the Secretary of the Treasury.
Rent, light, and fuel.*Provisos*.Limit.For rent, light, and fuel for first, second, and third class post- offices, three million one hundred and fifty thousand dollars: *Provided*, That there shall not be allowed for the use of any third-class post-office for rent a sum in excess of four hundred and eighty dollars, nor more than eighty dollars for fuel and light in any one year: *And provided further*, Ten-year leases.That the Postmaster-General may, in the disbursement of this appropriation, apply a part thereof to the purpose of leasing premises for the use of post-offices of the first, second, and third classes, at a reasonable annual rental, to be paid quarterly, for a term not exceeding ten years.
Miscellaneous.For necessary miscellaneous and incidental items directly connected with first and second class post-offices and money-order service, including furniture, cleaning, and all other matters not specifically provided for in other appropriations, two hundred and fifty thousand dollars. Canceling machines.For rental or purchase of canceling machines, including cost of power in rented buildings, motors, repairs to motors, and miscellaneous expenses of installation and operation, two hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars.
Assistant superintendents.For compensation to ten assistant superintendents salary and allowance division, at the rate of two thousand dollars per annum each, and for their per diem allowance when actually traveling on business of the Post-Office Department, at a rate to be fixed by the Postmaster- General not to exceed four dollars per day, and for other necessary official expenses, thirty-four thousand six hundred dollars. City delivery.Letter carriers.For pay of letter carriers at offices already established, including substitutes for carriers absent without pay, city delivery service, twenty-four million four hundred and fifty thousand dollars.
Substitutes, etc.For pay of substitutes for letter carriers absent with pay, and of auxiliary and temporary letter carriers at offices already established, one million two hundred thousand dollars. New offices.For pay of letter carriers, substitute and auxiliary letter carriers at new offices entitled to city delivery service under existing law, fifty thousand dollars. Horse hire, etc.For horse-hire allowance, and the rental of vehicles, seven hundred and fifty thousand dollars, and the sum of five thousand dollars shall be immediately available.
Car fare and bicycles.For car fare and bicycle allowance, three hundred and fifty thousand dollars. Mechanics.For compensation to twenty-two mechanics, at not exceeding nine hundred dollars each, nineteen thousand eight hundred dollars. Detroit, marine service.For marine postal service. Detroit, Michigan, four thousand five hundred dollars. Incidentals.For incidental expenses of the city delivery service, including freight and drayage on equipment, furniture, and supplies, and erecting, paint-1211ing, and repairing letter and package boxes and posts, repairing clocks and other equipment, and for maps and miscellaneous items, forty-five thousand dollars.
For car fare for special-delivery messengers in emergency cases,Special delivery.Car fare. ten thousand dollars. For fees to special-delivery messengers, one million and seventy-fiveFees. thousand dollars. For travel and miscellaneous expenses in the postal service, office ofTravel, etc. the First Assistant Postmaster-General, one thousand dollars. office of the second assistant postmaster-general.Second Assistant Postmaster-General. For inland transportation by star routes, including temporary serviceTransportation.Star routes. to newly established offices, seven million two hundred and fifty thousand dollars: *Provided*, That no part of this appropriation shall be*Provisos*.Discontinued if served by rural delivery. expended for continuance of any star-route service the patronage of which shall be served entirely by the extension of rural-delivery service, nor shall any of said sum be expended for the establishment of new star-route service for a patronage which is already entirely served by rural-delivery service: *Provided*, That out of this appropriationAlaska service. the Postmaster-General is authorized to provide difficult or emergency mail service in Alaska, including the establishment and equipment of relay stations, in such manner as he may think advisable without advertising therefor.
For inland transportation by steamboat, or other power-boat routes,Steamboat routes. eight hundred and twenty-nine thousand dollars. For mail-messenger service, one million three hundred and eightyMessenger service. thousand dollars. For the transmission of mail by pneumatic tubes or other similarPneumatic tubes, etc.Contracts. devices, one million two hundred and fifty thousand dollars, and the Postmaster-General is hereby authorized to enter into contracts not exceeding, in the aggregate, one million three hundred and eighty- eight thousand seven hundred and fifty-nine dollars, under the provisions of the law, for a period not exceeding ten years: *Provided*,*Proviso*.Limitation to cities.
That said service shall not be extended in any cities other than those in which the service is now under contract under authority of Congress, except the Borough of Brooklyn, of the City of New York, and the cities of Baltimore, Maryland; Cincinnati, Ohio; Kansas City, Missouri; Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, and San Francisco, California. For regulation, screen, or other wagon service, one million twoWagon service. hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars. For mail bags, cord fasteners, label cases, and labor and materialMail bags, etc. necessary for repairing equipment, and for incidental expenses pertaining thereto, four hundred and fifty thousand dollars.
For mail locks and keys, chains, tools, and machinery, and labor andLocks, keys, etc. material necessary for manufacturing and repairing same, and incidental expenses pertaining thereto, forty-five thousand dollars. For rent of suitable buildings for the use of the Post-Office Department,Repair shop, etc. including the. mail bag repair shop, lock repair shop, and the division of supplies, thirty-two thousand dollars: *Provided*, That the*Proviso*.Contract. Postmaster-General is authorized in Iris discretion to enter into a contract for the rent of suitable buildings in the vicinity of the railroad tracks for the use of the Post-Office Department for the period of ten years.
For electric power and light, and the repair of machinery in saidEquipment. buildings, five thousand dollars. For moving supplies, furniture, and machinery, and for the installationMoving supplies, etc. of the same, three thousand dollars. And the sums appropriated in the last three paragraphs shall be available when said buildings are ready for occupancy. 1212 Railroad routes.For inland transportation by railroad routes, forty-four million six hundred and sixty thousand dollars:
Readjustment of rates.The Postmaster-General is hereby authorized and directed to readjust the compensation to be paid from and after the first day of July, nineteen hundred and seven, for the transportation of mail on railroad routes carrying their whole length an average weight of mails per day of upward of five thousand pounds by making the following changes in the present rates per mile per annum for the transportation of mail on such routes, and hereafter the rates on such routes shall be as Changes.follows:
On routes carrying their whole length an average weight of mail per day of more than five thousand pounds and less than forty-eight thousand pounds the rate shall be five per centum less than the present rates on all weight carried in excess of five thousand pounds; and on routes carrying their whole length an average weight of mail per day of more than forty-eight thousand pounds the rate shall be five per centum less than the present rates on all weight carried in excess of five thousand pounds up to forty-eight thousand pounds, and for each additional two thousand pounds in excess of forty-eight thousand pounds at the rate of nineteen dollars and twenty-four cents upon all roads other than land-grant roads, and upon all land-grant roads the rate shall be seventeen dollars and ten cents for each two thousand pounds carried in excess of said forty-eight thousand pounds.
Post-office cars.Additional pay.That after July first, nineteen hundred and seven, additional pay allowed for every line comprising a daily trip each way of railway post-office cars shall be at a rate not exceeding twenty-five dollars per mile per annum for ears forty feet in length, and twenty-seven dollars and fifty cents per mile per annum for forty-five-foot cars, and thirty- two dollars and fifty cents per mile per annum for fifty-foot cars, and forty dollars per mile per annum for cars fifty-five feet or more in length.
Fines for delays, etc.That the Postmaster-General shall require all railroads carrying the mails to maintain their regular train schedules as to time of arrival and departure of said mails, and it shall be his duty to impose and collect reasonable tines for delay when such delay is not caused by unavoidable accidents or conditions. Freight on postal cards, wrappers, etc.For pay of freight or expressage on postal cards, stamped envelopes, newspaper wrappers, and empty mail bags, two hundred and fifty thousand dollars.
And the Postmaster-General shall require, Withdrawal of freight, etc., at weighing seasons.when in freightable lots and whenever practicable, the withdrawal from the mails of all postal cards, stamped envelopes, newspaper wrappers, empty mail bags, furniture, equipment, and other supplies for the postal service, except postage stamps, in the respective weighing divisions of the country, immediately preceding the weighing period in said divisions, and thereafter such postal cards, stamped envelopes, newspaper wrappers, empty mail bags, furniture, equipment, and other supplies for the postal service, except postage stamps, shall be transmitted by either freight or express.
Post-office car service.For railway post-office car service, five million and eighty thousand dollars. Railway mail service.Division officers, clerks, etc.Railway mail service: Eleven division superintendents, at three thousand dollars each: eleven assistant division superintendents, at two thousand dollars each; five assistant superintendents, at two thousand dollars each: nineteen assistant superintendents, at one thousand eight hundred dollars each; one hundred and twenty-six chief clerks, at one thousand eight hundred dollars each; two hundred and sixty clerks, class six, at not exceeding one thousand six hundred dollars each; one thousand two hundred and fifty clerks, class five, at not exceeding one thousand five hundred dollars each; five hundred and thirty clerks, class five, at not exceeding one thousand four hundred dollars each; one thousand nine hundred and fifty clerks, class four, 1213at not exceeding one thousand three hundred dollars each; one thousand eight hundred and fifty clerks, class four, at not exceeding one thousand two hundred dollars each; five thousand six hundred clerks, class three, at not exceeding one thousand one hundred dollars each; two thousand two hundred clerks, class two, at not exceeding one thousand dollars each; nine hundred and ten clerks, class one, at not exceeding nine hundred dollars each; eight hundred clerks, class one, at not exceeding eight hundred dollars each; in all, seventeen million four hundred and thirty-nine thousand four hundred and forty-three dollars: *Provided*, That the Postmaster-General may, in his discretion,*Provisos*.Sick leave. under such regulations as he may provide, allow a clerk who is sick leave of absence with pay, his duties to be performed without expense to the Government during the period for which he is granted leave, not exceeding thirty days in any fiscal year: *Provided further*, That hereafter railway mail clerks on entering the service shall receiveEntrance and advances of clerks. the salary of the lowest grade, and no clerk shall be advanced more than two hundred dollars in any period of one year’s service.
And the appointment and assignment of clerks hereunder shall beAppointments limited. so made during the fiscal year as not to involve a greater aggregate expenditure than this sum. For temporary clerk hire in classes one and two for emergency service,Emergency service. fifty thousand dollars. For substitutes for clerks on vacation, fifty thousand dollars: *Provided*, Substitute clerks.*Proviso*.Annual vacation.That the Postmaster-General may allow railway postal clerks whose duties require them to work six days or more per week, fifty- two weeks per year, an annual vacation of fifteen days with pay.
That the leave of absence authorized by law to clerks in post-officesConstruction. shall be construed exclusive of Sundays and holidays. For acting clerks, in place of clerks injured while on duty, and toActing clerks.Allowance in case of death. enable the Postmaster-General to pay the sum of one thousand dollars, which shall be exempt from the payment of debts of the deceased, to the legal representatives of any railway postal clerk or substitute railway postal clerk who shall be killed while on duty or who, being injured while on duty, shall die within one year thereafter as the result of such injury, one hundred thousand dollars.
Acting or substitute city letter carriers, rural letter carriers, post-officeTemporary employees.Pay for services. clerks, railway mail clerks, and other employees connected with the postal service who are temporary employees shall be paid at the usual rate for each day’s service during the fiscal year ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and seven, and thereafter. For actual and necessary expenses, division superintendents, assistantTraveling expenses. division superintendents, and chief clerks, railway mail service, and railway postal clerks, while actually traveling on business of the Post-Office Department and away from their several designated headquarters, twenty thousand dollars.
For rent, light, fuel, telegraph, and miscellaneous office expenses,Miscellaneous. schedules of mail trains, telephone service, and badges for railway postal clerks, sixty thousand dollars. For per diem allowance of assistant superintendents while actuallyPer diem, etc., assistant superintendents. traveling on official business away from their home, their official domicile, and their headquarters, at a rate to be fixed by the Postmaster- General, not to exceed four dollars per day, twenty-seven thousand five hundred dollars; and for their necessary official expenses not covered by their per diem allowance, not exceeding two thousand five hundred dollars; in all, thirty thousand dollars.
For inland transportation of mail by electric and cable cars, eightElectric and cable car service.*Provisos*.Compensation. hundred and seventy thousand dollars: *Provided*, That the rate of compensation to be paid per mile shall not exceed the rate now paid to companies performing such service, except that the Postmaster-General, in cases where the quantity of mail is large and the number of 1214exchange points numerous, may, in his discretion, authorize payment for closed-pouch service at a rate per mile not to exceed one-third above the rate per mile now paid for closed-pouch service: and for mail cars and apartments carrying the mails, not to exceed the rate of Outside of cities.one cent per linear foot per car mile of travel: *Provided further*, That the rates for electric-car service on routes over twenty miles in length outside of cities shall not exceed the rates paid for service on steam Chicago, Ill.Underground cars.railroads: *Provided, however*, That one hundred and seventy-two thousand six hundred dollars of the sum in this item appropriated is hereby made available for the purpose of covering the cost of mail service by underground electric cars in the city of Chicago, Illinois, now under contract.
Foreign mails.*Provisos*.Clerks on steam ships.For transportation of foreign mails, three million two hundred and sixty-eight thousand dollars: *Provided*, That hereafter the Postmaster- General shall be authorized to expend such sums as may be necessary, not exceeding one hundred and five thousand dollars, to cover one- half of the cost of transportation, compensation, and expense of clerks to be employed in assorting and pouching mails in transit on steamships between the United States and other postal administrations Pier transfers, New York and San Francisco.in the International Postal Union, and not exceeding forty thousand dollars for transferring the foreign mail from incoming steamships in New York Bay to the steamship and railway piers, and for transferring the foreign mail from incoming steamships in San Francisco Indemnity for lost registered mail.Bay to the piers: *And provided further*, That the Postmaster-General be authorized to expend not exceeding five thousand dollars for payment of idemnity for the loss of registered articles in the international mails, in accordance with the provisions of treaty stipulations.
Assistant superintendent.For assistant superintendent, division of foreign mails, with headquarters in New York, New York, two thousand five hundred dollars. Balances due foreign countries.For balances due foreign countries, one hundred and seventy-nine thousand dollars. Travel, etc.For travel and miscellaneous expenses in the postal service, office of the Second Assistant Postmaster-General, one thousand dollars. office of the third assistant postmaster-general.Third Assistant Postmaster-General.
Stamps.For manufacture of adhesive postage stamps, special-delivery stamps, and books of stamps, five hundred and nine thousand dollars. Stamped envelopes and wrappers.For manufacture of stamped envelopes and newspaper wrappers, one million two hundred and seventy-five thousand dollars. Distribution.For pay of agent and assistants to distribute stamped envelopes and newspaper wrappers, and expenses of agency, twenty thousand eight hundred and sixty dollars. Postal cards.For manufacture of postal cards, two hundred and fourteen thousand dollars.
Distribution.For pay of agents and assistants to distribute postal cards, and expenses of agency, five thousand seven hundred and twenty dollars. Ship, etc., letters.For ship, steamboat, and way letters, five hundred dollars. Indemnity, lost registered mail.For payment of limited indemnity for the loss of pieces of first- class domestic registered matter, five thousand dollars. Travel, etc.For travel and miscellaneous expenses in the postal service, office of the Third Assistant Postmaster-General, one thousand dollars.
Special counsel, second-classmail privilege suits.*Ante*, p. 476.The appropriation for the fiscal year nineteen hundred and seven of twenty-five thousand dollars for the employment of special counsel to prosecute and defend suits affecting the second-class mailing privilege is hereby reappropriated and made available for the fiscal year nineteen hundred and eight. office of the fourth assistant postmaster-general.Fourth Assistant Postmaster-General. Stationery.For stationery, including all money-order offices, ninety-five thousand dollars. 1215 For official registry and dead-letter envelopes, two hundred thousandOfficial envelopes. dollars.
For blanks, blank books, printed and engraved matter, binding andMoney-order blanks, etc. carbon paper for the money-order service, two hundred thousand dollars. For blanks, books, and printed matter of urgent or special character,Registry blanks, etc. including the preparation, publication, and free distribution by postmasters to the public of a pamphlet containing general postal information, intaglio seals, and other miscellaneous items of immediate necessity for the registry system, five thousand dollars.
Supplies for the city delivery service, including letter boxes, letter-boxCity delivery supplies. fasteners, package boxes, posts, furniture, satchels, straps, baskets. time cards, time card frames, time-recorder supplies, freight, package, and cartage charges, maps, transfer designs, and stencils, eighty thousand dollars. For steel and rubber postmarking, rating, and money-order stampsPostmarking, etc., stamps. and repairs to same, metal, rubber and combination type, dates and figures, type holders, ink and pads for canceling and stamping purposes, thirty-five thousand dollars.
For letter balances, scales, test weights, repairs to same, and for tapeScales, etc. measures; ten thousand dollars. For wrapping paper, thirteen thousand dollars.Wrapping paper. For wrapping twine and tying devices, two hundred thousandTwine. dollars. For packing boxes, sawdust, paste, and hardware, two thousandPacking boxes, etc. five hundred dollars. For facing slips, plain and printed, including the furnishing ofFacing slips, etc. paper for the same; and for card slide labels, blanks and books of an urgent nature, sixty thousand dollars.
For the purchase or exchange of typewriting machines, envelope-openingMiscellaneous supplies. machines, and computing machines, and for the purchase of copying presses, numbering machines, and miscellaneous articles purchased and furnished directly to the postal service, eighty thousand dollars. Supplies for the rural-delivery service, including collection boxes,Rural delivery.Supplies. furniture, satchels, badges, straps, map supplies, freight, drayage and cartage charges, repairing satchels and furniture, repairing, erecting, and painting collection boxes in the rural-delivery service, eighty-five thousand dollars.
For pay of letter carriers, substitutes for carriers on annual leave,Carriers. and clerks in charge of substations of rural-delivery service, tolls and ferriage, thirty-four million nine hundred thousand dollars. That on and after July first, nineteen hundred and seven, letterSalary rated.Vol. 33, p. 440.*Provisos*.Annual leaves. carriers of the rural-delivery service shall receive a salary not exceeding nine hundred dollars per annum: *Provided*, That rural letter carriers after twelve months’ service shall be allowed annual leave with pay not to exceed fifteen days; the substitutes for carriers on vacation to be paid during said service at the rate paid the carrier: *Provided further*,Substation clerks.
That not to exceed twelve thousand dollars of the amount hereby appropriated may be used for compensation of clerks in chargePower boats. of substations: *And provided further*, That in the discretion of the Postmaster-General the pay of any rural carrier on a water route who furnishes his own power boat, and is employed during the summer months, may be fixed at an amount not exceeding nine hundred dollars in any one calendar year. To defray expenses incident to the shipment of supplies, includingShipping supplies. hardware, boxing, package, cartage, and the pay of one carpenter and three laborers for assignment in connection therewith, one hundred thousand dollars.
For travel and miscellaneous expenses in the postal service, office ofTravel, etc. the Fourth Assistant Postmaster-General, one thousand dollars. 1216 Record of all mail carried from July 1 to December 31, 1907, to be kept.The Postmaster-General shall cause a record to be kept from July first to December thirty-first, nineteen hundred and seven, inclusive, of the weight in pounds, respectively, of first-class, second class, free, paid-at-the-pound rate, and transient, third-class, and fourth-class matter and all franked and penalty matter and the equipment carried in connection therewith.
Weighing for thirty days at representative offices.For thirty days during such period he shall require a record to be kept of the weight of each of the classes above specified dispatched from such post-offices as he shall determine to be representative for the purpose and have computed thereon, in the most practicable way, the average haul of the mail of the different classes and subclasses as Record of revenue, etc.hereinbefore set out. For seven days during such period he shall cause a record to be kept of the revenue received from each of the classes and subclasses of mail matter hereinbefore specified and a count of the number of pieces of each class and subclass, snowing also for the first-class the number of letters, postal cards, and other matter separately, Record of car loads.and for thirty consecutive days during such period he shall cause a record to be kept for the purpose of ascertaining the average load of railway post-office cars other than storage cars, the average load of storage cars, and the average load in compartment cars.
Report to Congress.Such record shall be reported to Congress by May first; nineteen hundred and eight, and the sum of three hundred thousand dollars, Appropriation for all expenses.or so much thereof as may be necessary, is hereby appropriated, out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, to cover the expense of such weighing and counting and the recording and compilation of the information so acquired, and the rent of necessary rooms in the city of Washington, and the same shall be immediately available.
Joint commission to investigate and report on postal system.That there shall be appointed a joint commission of Congress, consisting of three Senators to be appointed by the President of the Senate, and three members of the House of Representatives to be Scope.appointed by the Speaker of the House, whose duty it shall be to make an investigation into the entire business system of the Post-Office Department and the postal service, including the methods of accounting and expenditure in force in such Department and service, with a view to determining what changes or improvements should be instituted in the organization and conduct thereof, and whether a system may not be devised for dealing with the revenues and expenditures of the Post-Office Department and the postal service so that the operating expenses thereof may be separated and assigned to the various classes of mail matter transported by that service in such manner as to show the true cost of the transportation, handling, and delivery of each class of mail matter and of the various subdivisions of such classes; as well as the true cost of each of the special services rendered the Government and the public by the postal service.
Expert, etc., assistance.Such commission is authorized to employ expert and professional service, including statisticians, accountants, auditors, and persons experienced in traffic management, to aid in the work of inquiry and Officers.examination; also to employ a secretary, disbursing officer, clerks, stenographers, and such other assistance as may be necessary, said experts, secretary, clerks, and employees to be paid such compensation Details from Department.as the said commission may deem just and reasonable.
The Postmaster-General shall detail, from time to time, such officers and employees as may be requested by said commission in its investigation. Authorized to send for persons, etc.Said commission is authorized to send for persons, books, papers, and documents, and, through its chairman or acting chairman or the chairman of any subcommittee thereof, to administer oaths and to examine witnesses and books, papers, and documents respecting all matters pertaining to the duties of said commission and to sit during Report.the recess of Congress.
Said commission shall, as soon as practicable 1217after the beginning of the first session of the Sixtieth Congress, report to Congress such conclusions, recommendations, and plans as said commission may see proper to make by bill or otherwise. The sumAppropriation for expenses immediately available. of seventy-five thousand dollars, or so much thereof as may be necessary, is hereby appropriated, out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, to be paid out on the audit and order of the chairman or acting chairman of the said commission, which audit and order shall be conclusive and binding upon all Departments as to the correctness of the accounts of such commission.
Said appropriation shall be immediately available. That the appropriations herein made for the officers, clerks, and personsNo payment to permanently incapacitated persons. employed in the postal service shall not be available for the compensation of any persons permanently incapacitated for performing such service. The establishment of a civil-pension roll or an honorable-servicePension roll, etc., prohibited. roll, or the exemption of any of the officers, clerks, and persons in the postal service from the existing laws respecting employment in such service is hereby prohibited.
The Postmaster-General shall each year prepare and submit in hisStatement to be submitted with annual report. annual report to Congress estimates of the revenue and expenditures in the Postal Service for the fiscal year current, and also for the fiscal year next ensuing at the time said report is submitted, together with a statement of the receipts and expenditures for the preceding completed fiscal year. That if the revenues of the Post-Office Department shall be insufficientAppropriation to meet deficiencies. to meet the appropriations made by this Act, a sum equal to such deficiency of the revenue of said Department is hereby appropriated, to be paid out of any money in the Treasury not otherwise appropriated, to supply said deficiencies in the revenues for the Post-Office Department for the year ending June thirtieth, nineteen hundred and eight, and the sum needed may be advanced to the Post-Office Department upon requisition of the Postmaster-General.
Approved, March 2, 1907.