POSTAL SAVINGS BANKS 



POSTOFFICE DEPARTMENT 



Crceke's The Adhesive Stamps of the British 

 Isles; Goodwin's The Making of United States 

 Stamps. 



POSTAL SAVINGS BANKS. See SAVIN., s 

 BANKS. 



POSTAL UNION, INTERNATIONAL, a union 

 among nations for the purpose of establishing 

 a common standard in postal matters, and for 

 united action respecting the handling of mails. 

 There were formerly a number of postal 



differing widely in detail concerning inter- 

 national mail, and in many cases the cha 

 for transport across intervening st:n - \VTO ex- 

 cessive. The object of the union was to sim- 

 plify treaties and cheapen transit. 



The idea was borrowed from Germany; a.< 

 early as 1850 the then independent Germanic 

 states had formed such a union, and its bene- 

 fits were apparent. The final details for this 

 larger, international union were perfected at a 

 postal congress at Berne, Switzerland, in 1874. 

 It takes the form of an international treaty, 

 signed by the representatives of the partici- 

 pating nations; it now includes all the nations 

 of the world, with a few unimportant excep- 

 tions. In accordance with resolutions adopted, 

 there is a congress composed of delegates from 

 the signatory nations that meets every five 

 years to consider postal matters; each nation 



has one vote. There is a tribunal to settle dis- 

 putes, and permanent headquarters have been 

 established at Berne, Switzerland, uml 

 direction of the Swiss government. Uniform 



POSTAL UNION MONUMENT 

 At Berne, Switzerland. 



postage rates for the exchange of mail between 

 all members of the union have been estab- 

 lished. This represents but one phase of it- 

 activity, for every congress that meets has un- 

 der consideration methods for improving the 

 postal service between nations. 



THE STORY 'OF 



STOfFICE DEPARTMENT 



.OSTOFFICE DEPARTMENT, a govern- 

 ment department or institution for the convey- 

 ance and delivery of letters, papers and other 

 matter legally nmilablo. The name post is of 

 origin, fn.iu the "stations" aloim 1 1n- 

 roads of the H. ipire. where messen- 

 gers or couriers were kept in readiness to relay 

 dispatches. The postoffice as it is known to- 

 day IB in all essential features a modem insti- 



served only the i 

 ;y in times of war. T\\<> fir-t 

 r portal service to be used by private 

 individuals seems to have been established as 

 ' :irlv * f nth century betw< 



ilanseatic League. 



In England a system of posts was main- 

 tained in the reign of Henry VI II. ami WU 

 greatly developed under Klizaheth. .lames I 

 and Charles I. About 1640 the rate of postage 

 was fr< Od. for a sine! 



Sd. to Scotland and 9d. to In- 

 land, a penny (d.) equaling two 

 can or Canadian Various changes in 



the rates and in the management were made 

 until 1840. when the present system was estab- 

 Thc principal new features were the 

 introduction of a charge by weight, a uniform 

 rate for all distances, and prepayment. Pre- 

 payment was made easy by th< 

 devised stamps, to be attached to the letter. 



