The amount of money taken from unclaimed letters filed prior to July 1, 1867, was $19,914.67, which, together with $5,159.20 realized from the sale of waste paper, amounting to $25,073,87, was deposited in the treasury. The number of letters enclosing bills of exchange, checks, deeds, and other papers, classed as "minor" letters, was 21,262 with a nominal value of $5,109,554.48. Of this class 19,991 letters were restored to owners. The number of letters enclosing photographs, jewelry, and other articles, classed as "property" letters, was 49,386, of which 34,892 were restored to owners. The number of foreign letters returned unopened to the countries where they originated was 186,189, and those received from foreign countries was 64,194. The number of ordinary letters remailed to writers was 1,677,875; of these, 1,421,871, or 84 per cent. were delivered. It thus appears that of 4,306,508 letters consigned to the dead letter office during the year, there have been restored to owners 1,611,686; filed and held for future disposition, 18,553; and returned to foreign countries 186,189, leaving a balance of 2,490,080 indicative of the number that were properly or unavoidably destroyed. Of these, about 1,500,000 were worthless, being mostly circulars and gift or lottery advertisements; 256,004 were sent out but not delivered, leaving about 1,000,000 without signatures, or so written as to be unintelligible. In 1859, there were 381 dead letters to every one thousand dollars of postage revenue; in 1861, 339; in 1862, 302; in 1863, 246; in 1864, 301; in 1865, 326; in 1866, 347; in 1867, 278. Postal Money Order System, The whole number of money order post offices in opeeration at the close of the fiscal year, 1867, was 1,224. The number of orders issued during the year was 474,496 of the aggre gate value of.. The number paid was 461,876 of the value of.. .$9,229,327.72 To which is to be added the amount of orders repaid to purchasers.. Excess of issues over payments.. .$158,086.99 The money order business was more than doubled the last year. The receipts for fees on money orders issued and for premium received on exchange were.. The expenditures for commissions to postmasters, clerk hire, remittances lost in the mails, and incidental expenses were... Excess of receipts over expenditures.... 70,889.57 44,628.96 $26,260.61 *Not including the standing treasury credit of $700,000 for free matter. + Not including $1,191,666.67 paid for service for which special appropriation was made. Including $900,000 drawn under acts making appropriation for carrying free mail matter. From postages only. ESTIMATES FOR 1869. The ordinary expenditures for the year ending June 30, 1869, are estimated at.. .$21,200,000 500,000 75,000 To supply a deficiency in service between the United States and Brazil in the fiscal year ended June 30, 1866..... 12,500 Making the total estimated expenditures.. 1,637,500 .$22,837,500 The ordinary receipts, including the standing appropriation of $700,000 for carrying free mail matter, are estimated at... $16,700,000 Add amounts of special appropriation for California, China, and Brazil mails, and for the deficiency above named 1,562,500 18,262,500 Showing an excess of expenditures of.. $4,575,000 Deducting the undrawn balances of appropriations for the department, amounting to........ 2,000,000 Leaves the deficiency to be provided for from the general treasury. $2,575,000 APPROPRIATIONS FOR SPECIAL SERVICE. Overland mail transportation and marine service between New York and California...$900,000 Mail steamship service between San Francisco, Japan, and China.. ,500,000 Mail steamship service between the United States and Brazil.. .150,000 Deficiency on account of service between the United States and Brazil during the fiscal year ended June 30, 1866........... 12,500 75,000 Mail steamship service between San Francisco and the Sandwich Islands. TABLE OF MAIL SERVICE AND OF POSTAL RECEIPTS AND EXPENDITURES FOR THE YEAR ENDED JUNE 30, 1867, BY STATES. Statement showing operations and results of foreign mail service for the fiscal Amount of Postage on Mails Aggregate amount Being an increase over the amount reported for the previous year of....... 128,804.63 Being an increase of 877,264 over the number reported for the previous year. Number of newspapers sent from the United States.. 2,652,817 1,766,165 Total... 4,418,482 Number of newspapers received from Europe.... Being an increase of 590,347 over the number reported for the previous year. The excess of postages on mails sent from the United States to different countries of Europe over that accruing on mails received from the same countries was as follows: Great Britain, $17,776.32; France, $3,842.07; Bremen, $48,140.46; Hamburg, $27,304.84; total, $97,063.69. The excess of postages accruing on mails received over those sent, was as follows: Prussia, $41,610.86; Belgium, $1,507.76, total, $43,118.62. The sea transportation of mails to and from Europe was performed by the following steamship lines: Conveyed on foreign account:-Cunard line, $785,413.31; French line, $55,574.53; Bremen line, $154,348.02; Hamburg line, $95,791.44; Belgian line, $62.25; total on foreign account, $1,091,189.55. Conveyed on United States account:-Canadian line, $131,952.75; Dale line, $385,227.08; Bremen line, $166,088.82; Hamburg line, $88,266.03; Havre line; $89.197.55; American Lloyd line, $8,935.58; Baltimore line, $7,562.80; Continental Steamship Company line, $1,185.29; total on American account, $878,416.00; total, $1,969,605.55. RATES OF DOMESTIC POSTAGE. The law requires postage on all letters (including those to foreign countries when prepaid) excepting those written to the President or Vice-President, or members of Congress, or (on official business) to the chiefs of the executive departments of the government, and the heads of bureaus and chief clerks, and others invested with the franking privilege, to be prepaid by stamps or stamped envelopes, prepayment in money being prohibited. Postmasters can send oficial letters to other Postmasters free. The Adjutants General of the several States and Territories, are authorized to transmit through the mails, free of postage, any medals, certificates of thanks or other testimonials, awarded, or which may be awarded by the Legislatures of said States and Territories, to the soldiers thereof, under such regulations as the Postmaster General may direct. All drop letters must be prepaid. The rate of postage on drop letters, at offices where free delivery by carrier is established, is two cents per half ounce or fraction of a half ounce; at offices where such free delivery is not established the rate is one cent. The single rate of postage on all domestic mail letters throughout the United States is three cents per half ounce, with an additional rate of three cents for each additional half ounce or fraction of a half ounce. The ten cent (Pacific) rate is abolished. Letter postage is to be charged on all handbills, circulars, or other printed matter which shall contain any manuscript writing whatever. Daguerreotypes, when sent in the mail, are to be charged with letter postage by weight. Photographs on cards, paper, and other flexible material (not in cases) can be sent at the same rate as miscellaneous printed matter, viz., two cents for each four ounces or fraction thereof. POSTAGE ON TRANSIENT PRINTED MATTER. [All printed matter (except single copies of newspapers, magazines, and periodicals sent to regular subscribers from publishers) intended to go by mail westward from the western boundary of Kansas, or eastward from the eastern boundary of California, must be prepaid by stamps at letter postage rates. Sec. 259, P. O. Laws, Edition of 1866]. Books, not over four ounces in weight, to one address, 4 cts. ; over four oz. and not over eight oz., 8 cts.; over eight oz. and not over twelve oz., 12 cts.; over twelve oz. and not over sixteen oz., 16 cts. Circulars, not exceeding three in number, to one address, 2 cts.; over three and not over six, 4 cts.; over six and not over nine, 6 cts. ; over nine and not exceeding twelve, 8 cts. On Miscellaneous Mailable Matter (embracing all pamphlets, occasional publications, transient newspapers, handbills and posters, book manuscripts and proof-sheets, whether corrected or not, maps, prints, engravings, sheet music, blanks, flexible patterns, samples and sample cards, phonographic paper, letter envelopes, postal envelopes or wrappers, cards, paper, plain or ornamental, photographic representations of different types, seeds, cuttings, bulbs, roots and scions) the postage to be prepaid by stamps, is, on one package to one address, not over four oz. in weight, 2 cts. ; over four oz. and not over eight oz., 4 cts.; over eight oz. and not over twelve oz., 6 cts.; over twelve oz. and not over sixteen oz., 8 cts. The weight of packages of seeds, cuttings, roots and scions, to be franked, is limited to thirtytwo ounces. All mail matter not sent at letter rates of postage, embracing books, book manuscripts, proofsheets, and other printed matter, and all other mail matter, except seeds, must be so wrapped or enveloped with open sides or ends as to enable the postmaster to examine the package without destroying the wrapper, otherwise such packages must be rated with letter postage. No communication, whether in writing or in print, can be sent with any seeds, roots, cuttings or scions, maps, engravings, or other matter not printed, except upon the separate payment of postage upon each separate matter at the established rates. Exchange newspapers and periodicals cannot be remailed without being chargeable with postage. Where packages of newspapers or periodicals are received at any post office directed to one address, and the names of the club of subscribers to which they belong, with the postage for a quarter in advance, shall be handed to the postmaster, he shall deliver the same to their respec tive owners. But this does not apply to weekly newspapers which circulate free in the county where printed and published. Weekly newspapers and all other printed matter to the British North American Provinces, although sent from countries bordering on the line, are chargeable with the same rates as when sent to any point in the United States. All transient matter must be prepaid by stamps. But if it comes to the office of delivery without prepayment, or short-paid, the unpaid postage must be collected on delivery at the prepaid rate. FOREIGN LETTERS, &C. Letters to foreign countries, where prepayment of postage is compulsory, when insufficiently paid, are sent to the Dead Letter Office, to be opened and returned to the writers, and are thereby delayed one or two mails. When the United States official postage entries on the letters received from Great Britain or the Continent of Europe, are in red ink, the letter is to be considered as paid, when in black ink, as unpaid. Unpaid and insufficiently paid letters, to or from Great Britain and Ireland, or to or from the North German Union (including Austria and its States), the Netherlands, Belgium, Italy and Switzerland, are chargeable with a fine on delivery, in addition to the postage, when sent or arriving either by North German Union mail direct, or in closed mail via England. In the case of such letters arriving in the United States, the fine is five cents on each letter. This is marked on the letters at the various exchange offices, and collected at the offices of delivery. Registering Foreign Letters.-Letters can be registered in the United States for Great Britain and Ireland, for the North German Union, (including all the German States and Austria), and for all of the countries and places reached via the North German mails, except the following places in Turkey; Alexandretta, Latakia, Mersina, Retimo and Tripoli; also for Belgium, the Netherlands, Italy and Switzerland. Letters to Canada, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward's Island can be registered, but not to Newfoundland. Letters can be registered (by British mail, via England) to Cape of Good Hope, Ceylon, Constantinople, East Indies, Egypt (viz.: Alexandria, Cairo and Suez), Falkland Islands, Gambia, Gibraltar, Gold Coast, Hong Kong, Java, Lagos, Labuan, Liberia, Malta, Mauritius, Natal, New South Wales, Queensland, St. Helena, Sierra Leone, South Australia, Tasmania, Victoria and Western Australia, on payment of a registration fee (in stamps) of sixteen cents. This is in addition to the postage, which must be fully prepaid by stamps. The registry fee to be charged on registered letters and other postal packets to Germany, (as well as on letters to all countries and places reached via the North German mails, except the places in Turkey mentioned in the preceding paragraph, and except also the Papal States and Egypt,) to Austria and its States, or to Belgium and The Netherlands, via North German Union, direct or by closed mail, via England, and to Italy and Switzerland by closed mail via England, is eight cents, and on letters to Canada, Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and Prince Edward's Island, it is five cents - on letters and other postal packets to Great Britain and Ireland, eight cents. No other postal packets than letters can be sent registered beyond North Germany. The registration fee on letters to the Papal States via North German Union is twelve cents per half ounce-to Egypt, twenty cents each. All registered letters and other postal packets must be prepaid in full to destination. RATES OF POSTAGE ON PRINTED MATTER FOR FOREIGN COUNTRIES. 1. To or from France, Algeria, &c.. in French Mail or via England.-Newspapers, periodical works, books stitched or bound, pamphlets, catalogues, papers of music, prospectuses, circulars, and all other kinds of printed matter addressed to France, Algeria, or cities of Turkey, Syria and Egypt, in which France has post offices [viz.: Alexandria, Alexandretta, Beyrout, Constantinople, Dardanelles, Galatz, Gallipoli, Ibraila, Ineboli, Jaffa, Kerassund, Latakia, Messina, in Asiatic Turkey, Mitylene, Rhodes, Salonica, Samsoun, Şinope, Smyrna, Sulino, Trebizond, Tripoli, in Syria, Tultcha, Varna and Volo], can be dispatched to France direct, or by way of England, on prepayment of the following postage, viz.: newspapers, two cents each; books, periodical works, catalogues or pamphlets, four cents per four ounces or fraction thereof; to be in all cases collected in the United States, whether sent or received. France in like manner collects its own postage on all kinds of printed matter, whether sent or received. 2. To or from the North German Union (including all the German States and Austria), and to or from Belgium and the Netherlands, by Closed Mail via England.-Newspapers 4 cents each. if not exceeding four ounces in weight, and an additional rate of four cents for each additional weight of four ounces or fraction thereof; prepayment required. Book packets, prints of all |