POLICY OF THE BOARD. 15 
It often happens in the case of the larger geographic features, such 
as extended mountain ranges, rivers, etc., that different names have 
been applied locally in different parts and these different names have 
become well settled in usage. 
It frequently happens that railroads adopt names for their stations 
different from those of the towns or villages in which they are situ- 
ated and thus divide usage. To a much greater extent, however, than 
the railroads has the Post-Office Department confused the nomencla- 
ture of the smaller towns and villages by attaching names to the post- 
offices not in accordance with those in local usage. Indeed, an exam- 
ination shows that there are in this country thousands of cases where 
the name of the post-office does not conform to the local name of the 
place in which it is situated. These differences are very confusing to 
those using the postal service, and it seems desirable to reduce their 
number as far as practicable, at the same time recognizing the neces- 
sity of having but one post-office of the same name in each State. 
By far the greater number of differences in usage, however, have 
their origin in carelessness or ignorance on the part of those making 
use of the names. Such errors appearing in print are frequently per- 
petuated, especially in popular works, and often supplant the original 
name in usage. 
Originating in these divergencies of spelling there is distinctly trace- 
able a development of geographic nomenclature which is on the whole 
proceeding in a beneficial direction. Its tendency is toward the dis- 
carding of objectionable names and the adoption of pleasing ones, and 
toward the simplification and abbreviation of names, particularly as 
shown in the dropping of silent letters. The Board, recognizing this 
course of development, deems it to be within its power to guide it, 
and even to forestall it, as far as its future course may be foreseen. 
The extent to which geographic names have been modified without 
being radically changed is scarcely appreciated. A large proportion, 
probably a majority, of the names of natural features have undergone 
changes in spelling to a greater or less extent since they were first 
applied, while of the names of political divisions, although established 
by formal act, a considerable proportion have also changed, and such 
changes have, in thousands of cases, become firmly established. There- 
fore the position assumed by some persons, that we should revert to 
the original forms of names, would, if carried out, result in changing 
the names of a large proportion of our natural and artificial features. 
POLICY OF THE BOARD. 
The Board is agreed that in general the name which is in common 
local use at present should be adopted. This is a broad, general princi- 
ple, and summarizes the policy of the Board, with the exception of 
certain classes of cases mentioned below. It covers cases of changes 
