The Highland Weekly News

Postmasters' Schemes
Washington, September 15,-Postmaster J. W. Flaggs, of Ellsworth, Mass., has been recommended for removal for mailing circulars at his office that should have been mailed at Boston. Fourth-class Postmasters are paid salaries based upon the number of stamps canceled at their offices. If such Postmaster can, from friendship or through corrupt means, induce business men living in cities of the Presidential grade to mail large quantities of matter at their offices, the effect is to increase the Postmasters' salary. The practice is believed to prevail in a great extent in small towns surrounding Boston and to a smaller extent around New York. The inspector's investigations have revealed the fact that there are persons in these cities who make a business of furnishing and addressing great quantities of circulars for firms free of cost, upon the payment of one cent postage upon each circular. They take these circulars to a small village post-office and stipulate with a Postmaster for a share in his commission; and this share it seems, is large enough to make the business lucrative. There are said to be no statutes under which these persons can be punished, and it is probable that the attention of Congress will be called to the need of legislation in this particular. But the regulations of the Post-office Department authorize the Postmaster General to recover from postmasters any money paid to them in excess of their lawful commissions, and under this provision $7,000 has been recovered from postmasters guilty of the above described practice.