THOMAS C. JEFFERIES
ASSISTANT SECRETARY,
MANUFACTURERS TRUST COMPANY
Copyright, 1922, by
MANUFACTURERS TRUST COMPANY
[Illustration: _Honorable Hubert Work, Postmaster General._]
HONORABLE HUBERT WORK, Postmaster-General, was a practising physician
for many years in Colorado prior to entering government service, and
was also President of the American Medical Association. He served as
first assistant postmaster-general under Postmaster-General Will H.
Hays, his predecessor, who, upon assuming management of the Post-office
Department, practically dedicated it as an institution for service and
not for politics or profit. Since that time all possible efforts have
been made to humanize it.
The administration of Mr. Hays was ably assisted by Mr. Work who had
direct supervision of the 52,000 post-offices and more than two-thirds
of all postal workers. By persistent efforts to build up the spirit
of the great army of postal workers and bring the public and the
post-office into closer contact and more intimate relationship, the
postal system has been placed at last on a footing of _service to the
public_.
Mr. Work is an exponent of a business administration of the postal
service, and representatives of the larger business organizations and
Chambers of Commerce, from time to time, are called into conference, in
order that the benefit of their suggestions and their experience may be
obtained and their fullest co-operation enlisted in the campaign for
postal improvement.
_"Messenger of Sympathy and Love
Servant of Parted Friends
Consoler of the Lonely
Bond of the Scattered Family
Enlarger of the Common Life
Carrier of News and Knowledge
Instruments of Trade and Industry
Promoter of Mutual Acquaintance
Of Peace and Good Will
Among Men and Nations."_
Inscription on Post Office Building
at Washington, D. C.
[Illustration]
Statement Prepared for the
Manufacturers Trust Company
By HONORABLE HUBERT WORK, POSTMASTER-GENERAL
The need for a more general understanding of the purpose of the postal
establishment, its internal workings and the problems of operation, is
paramount if it is to afford the ultimate service which it is prepared
to render.
The business man, whose success is definitely connected with its smooth
operation, especially should be concerned with the directions for its
use. The post-office functions automatically, so far as he is concerned,
after he drops the letter into the slot; but before this stage is
reached, a certain amount of preparation is necessary. He could scarcely
expect to operate an intricate piece of machinery without first learning
the various controls, and no more is it to be expected that he can
secure the utmost benefit from such a diversified utility as the postal
service without knowing how to use the parts at his disposal.
Accordingly our efforts have been directed to the circulation of
essential postal information, and with the aid of the public press and
the coöperation of persons and organizations using the service, the
people throughout the country are now better informed on postal affairs
than at any time in its history.
The recognition of the human element is a recent forward step in
postal administration. Although the post-office has probably been the
most powerful aid to the development of a social consciousness, the
management until recently seems to have overlooked the relative value
of the individual in the postal organism.
The individual postal worker is now considered to be the unit, and the
effort to maintain the service at a high standard of efficiency is based
upon the betterment of his physical environment and the encouragement
of the spirit of partnership by enlisting his intelligent interest in
the problems of management and recognizing his real value to the postal
organization. Suggestions for improvement are invited and considered
from those within the service as well as those without, and it is
believed that a full measure of usefulness will not be attained until
the American public, which in this sense includes the postal workers
themselves, are convinced that the service belongs to them.
[Illustration]
GENERAL OFFICERS OF THE
POST-OFFICE DEPARTMENT
The postmaster-general is assisted in the administration of the
Post-office Department by four assistant postmasters-general. The first
assistant postmaster-general has supervision over the postmasters,
post-office clerks, and city letter carriers at all post-offices, as
well as the general management of the postal business of those offices,
the collection, delivery, and preparation of mail for despatch. The
second assistant postmaster-general is concerned entirely with the
transportation of mail by rail (both steam and electric), by air,
and by water. He supervises the railway mail, air mail, foreign mail
services, and adjusts the pay for carrying the mail. The third assistant
postmaster-general is the financial official of the department and
has charge of the money-order and registry service, the distribution
of postage-stamps, and the classification of mail matter. The fourth
assistant postmaster-general directs the operation of the rural delivery
service, the distribution of supplies, and the furnishing of equipment
for the post-offices and railway mail service.
In addition to the four assistants there is a solicitor, or legal
officer; a chief post-office inspector, who has jurisdiction over
the traveling inspectors engaged in inspecting, tracing lost mail,
and investigating mail depredations, or other misuse of the mail; a
purchasing agent; a chief clerk, who supervises the clerical force at
headquarters in Washington; and a controller, who audits the accounts of
the 52,000 postmasters.
[Illustration: _The Postmaster General and General Administration
Assistants._ 1--HON. HUBERT WORK, _Postmaster General_. 2--HON. JOHN H.
BARTLETT, _First Assistant Postmaster General_. 3--HON. PAUL HENDERSON,
_Second Assistant Postmaster General_. 4--HON. W. IRVING GLOVER, _Third
Assistant Postmaster General_. 5--HON. H. H. BILLANY, _Fourth Assistant
Postmaster General_. ]