WHAT IS REQUIRED OF CANDIDATES.
Clerks and carriers must be citizens of the United States,
physically fit for the service and temperate. They must be more
than 18 years of age and not more than 45, stand 5 feet 4 inches
in height in bare feet and weigh not less than 125 pounds without
overcoat and hat. Some applicants who know they are below the
weight foolishly try to secrete about their person, beneath the
soles of their feet, or in their hair weighty materials to make
up the deficiency. Not one in a hundred ever succeeds in fooling
the lynx-eyed examiners, but those who try, do succeed in getting
themselves blackballed and are debarred from taking examinations
in the future. Female applicants are not required to be of any
specific height or weight. The age limits are waived in the cases
of persons honorably discharged from the military or naval service
by reason of disability resulting from wounds received or sickness
incurred in the line of duty, but they are waived only for such
persons as have been physically disabled in the way mentioned.
Physical Conditions.
Eye glasses are permitted during the examination, but very serious
defective sight is sufficient to cause rejection. As also are
defective hearing, or speech; persons blind in one eye; one-armed,
one-handed, or one-legged persons, or those having crippled arms
or legs, or those suffering from asthma or hernia. Deaf mutes and
persons with defective speech may, however, be appointed to the
positions of mail clerk, distributor, and directing and forwarding
clerk. Applicants also are excluded from examinations for any of
the following reasons:
That he is, on the date of the examination, under the minimum or
over the maximum age limitation.
That he has any of the following defects: Insanity, tuberculosis,
paralysis, epilepsy, blindness, loss of both arms or both legs,
loss of arm and leg, badly crippled or deformed hands, arms, feet,
or legs, uncompensated calvular disease of the heart, locomotor
ataxia, cancer, Bright’s disease, diabetes, or is otherwise
physically disqualified for the service which he seeks.
That he is addicted to the habitual use of intoxicating beverages
to excess.
That he is enlisted in the United States Army or Navy and has not
secured permission for his examination from the Secretary of War or
the Secretary of the Navy, respectively. Written permission must
be filed with the formal application.
That he has, within approximately one year, passed the same
examination for which he again desires to apply. This restriction
does not apply to persons who, having taken one annual examination,
desire to take the next annual examination, although a full year
may not have elapsed.
That he has been dismissed from the Federal service for delinquency
or misconduct within one year preceding the date of his
application. Whether or not an application will be accepted after
the expiration of a year from a person dismissed from the service
rests with the Commission, and each case of this character will be
considered on its individual merits.
That he has failed after probation to receive absolute appointment
to the position for which he again applies within one year from the
date of the expiration of his probationary service.
That he has made a false statement in his application, or has
been guilty of fraud or deceit in any manner connected with his
application or examination, or has been guilty of crime or infamous
or notoriously disgraceful conduct.
That he has been discharged for desertion from the military or
naval service of the United States under section 1998, Revised
Statutes.
Clerks and Carriers Are Bonded.
Each clerk and carrier when appointed to the service must furnish
bonds in the sum of $1,000. In most first and second class cities
there are surety companies that make a specialty of supplying such
bonds for persons on entering the postal service. The charge,
which is paid by the employee, is twenty-five cents per annum for
a carrier and fifty cents for a clerk. In addition the carrier
must furnish his own uniform and cap, which averages from $15.00
to $20.00 a year. The only other expense imposed upon a clerk is
thirty-five cents for his badge, and this is returned to him when
he leaves the service and surrenders the badge.