Sec. 756. Employés must Examine Offices at the End of Runs.-Employés will thoroughly examine their Offices before leaving, to see that no mail is left therein, and that every precaution for the proper protection of the Office has been taken.

Sec. 557. Replies to Official Communications. Each employé is required to date and sign with his official signature all replies to official inquiries and other communications.

Sec. 758. Who may have Access to Offices.-The Office is for the exclusive accommodation of the mails and the persons specially appointed to take charge of the same. It is strictly private, not to be entered by any person except regular Special Agents of the Post-Office Department and persons who may be authorized by the General Superintendent and Superintendents of the Railway Mail Service. The conductor of the train, however, will have access to the Office in the performance of his duties, and, in case of necessity, other railway employés may pass through, but none of them shall be allowed to remain therein.

Sec. 759. Trip Permits to Ride in Offices.-Permits, signed by the General Superintendent Railway Mail Service, and countersigned by one of the Division Superintendents, will be required (except for Special Agents of the Post-Office Department) as authority for riding in Offices. Without such permit no person except Special Agents of the Post-Office Department, who will be required by the employé in charge to show their commissions, will be allowed to ride in an Office. This applies to all employés in the service passing over lines to which they are not assigned.

Sec. 760. All but Annual Permits to be Taken up.-Permits will be taken up by the employé in charge of the Office, who will affix his postmark, with date, also his name, on the reverse side, and forward to his Division Superintendent with his trip report, noting on the same the points between which the person rode in his Office. If it is an annual permit, it should not be taken up, but the number of it should be noted on the trip report, and also the points between which the holder rode in the Office.

Sec. 761. Permits not good for Transportation.-A permit is in no way to be considered as furnishing transportation to the person holding it, but simply as authority to ride in the Office, and the conductor must be notified, so that he may take up ticket, or pass, or collect fare.

Sec. 762. Sale of Postage-Stamps by Employés.-Employés are required to keep constantly on hand a supply of postage-stamps of the denomination of three cents, for the accommodation of the public at the Office. Applicants should make their own change. It is a penal offense for an employé to demand for a postage-stamp a sum exceeding that expressed on its face.

Sec. 763. Employés on Duty not to Traffic.-Traffic in merchandise by employés, while on duty or the active engagement, at any time, in any occupation of profit or emolument, is strictly prohibited. They must confine themselves wholly to the duties imposed upon them by the Department. The time while off actual duty is for rest and study.

Sec. 764. Must not Impart Information to unauthorized Persons..-No information must be imparted, voluntarily or otherwise, concerning letters or other mailmatter passing through the hands of employés in the process of distribution, excepting to those who may be officially authorized to receive information, and when information may be desired by them.

Sec. 765. Turning over Property of Department.-On the resignation, suspension, or removal of an employé, he shall turn over the mail-keys and all other property and records (including the records of registered packages received and forwarded) in his possession to the Superintendent of Railway Mail Service of the Division in which he last performed service. A refusal to deliver all or either of the above articles of property, on demand, is an indictable offense under the statutes of the United States.

Sec. 766. Forwarding of Resignations.-Resignations must be forwarded to the Department through the Superintendent of the Division, and should be sent as long prior to the date on which they are intended to take effect as possible.

Sec. 767. No Information to be Given Concerning Vacancies.-Information regarding vacancies or probable vacancies in the service must not be imparted by employés, nor must they take any part in procuring appointments.

Sec. 768. Intoxicating Liquors Prohibited. The use of intoxicating liquors when on duty is absolutely prohibited.

Sec. 769. Mail in Transit not to be Delivered.-Employés are specially instructed not to make a delivery at the Office of letters in transit, which come into their hands for distribution, to any person whatever (except an authorized Special Agent of the Department), although it be personally known to them that the applicant is the person named in the address. The act of delivery is devolved by law and the regulations of the Department on the postmaster at the post-office to which the letters are addressed.

Sec. 770. Public Property not to be Used for Private Purposes.-The use of any property of the Department for personal purposes is strictly prohibited.

Sec. 771. Exchange of Pouches.-Exchange of letter-mails must always be made in locked pouches, and, whether there is any letter-mail or not, a pouch, duly locked, must be furnished whenever one is due.

Sec. 772. Mail must not be Delivered at Places not Post-Offices.-Under no circumstances should mail be delivered at any place not a regularly established postoffice; and wherever a post-office is discontinued, the mail for it should be delivered into the nearest established post-office.

Sec. 773. List to be kept of Exchange Pouches.-Each employé in charge of an Office must keep a list of all exchange pouches that should be dispatched and received by him, and on each run each pouch received must be "checked off" at the time it is received. Any failures to receive any regular exchange must be reported to the Division Superintendent on the "trip report."

Sec. 774. Irregularities to be Reported.-Every serious irregularity in the forwarding of mails should be specially reported, and in making these reports, where letters are concerned, give the exact postmark, including the hour. In the case of newspapers, state whether received in a pouch or a sack, and, if in a sack, whether it contained all second class, all third class, or mixed matter; and if all one publication, give the name and date of it. In addition to the above, the date, place, exact time of receipt, and train by which received, should be given. In all cases, the tag on a missent pouch or sack must be forwarded with the report to the Division Superintendent.

Sec. 775. Missent Matter to be so Stamped.-Each letter or paper missent to an Office must be plainly stamped MISSENT, and the postmark of the Office also stamped plainly thereon. This also applies particularly to registered mail.

Sec. 776. Mutilation of Property Prohibited. Any mutilation of property furnished for the use and convenience of the employés of the service is strictly pro hibited.

Sec. 777. Employés must Examine Order-Book.-Employés must, immediately previous to starting out upon each run, invariably examine all orderbooks or orders left for their guidance.

Sec. 778. Second Class and other Matter outside of Mail-Bags.-Mail-matter must under no consideration be carried outside of the regular mail-bags, except secondclass matter designed and marked for outside delivery, or matter the form of which prevents it from being carried in the mail-bag.

Sec. 779. Reading Mail-Matter in Transit Forbidden.-Employés must

not remove newspapers or periodicals in the mail from their wrappers, packages, or bundles for the purpose of reading them.

Sec. 780. Case Exminations.-Case examinations of employés will be had, from time to time, upon the official schemes of distribution furnished them, the connection of trains as shown in the "schedule" of mail-trains, and such other instructions and orders as relate to the service.

Sec. 781. Examination of Employés on their Instructions.-Employés will be examined as to their knowledge of the "Instructions to Employés of the Railway Mail Service" at each case examination. The questions asked will be such as will require an answer giving the substance of each section of the instructions, and the result of the examination will be reported to the Department.

Sec. 782. Probationary Appointees to be Examined Monthly.-All probationary appointees will be examined monthly during their probationary term. These examinations will consist of a knowledge of the instructions, the schemes of distribution which may be furnished them, and railway connections at the various junctions, as given in the schedule of mail-trains. The result of each examination will be reported to the Department, and on the result of these examinations and their efficiency in their work will depend their permanent appointment in the service.

Sec. 783. Employés on Night Lines.-The special attention of employés on night lines is called to the following: When there is any mail to be distributed or work to be done, every employé must be awake and do his full share.

When the distribution is entirely finished and all of the work done, there is no objection to a part of the crew going to sleep, but at least one employé must always be wide awake and on duty.

This precaution is absolutely necessary for the proper protection of the registered and other mail against accident, fire, or robbery, as well as for the personal safety of the employés on duty.

Sec. 784. Securing Mail-Locks and Mail-Key.-Employés when on duty must always wear the mail-key securely attached to their clothing by the safety-chain. Under no circumstances will employés on vacating their Offices leave mail-locks therein.

Sec. 785. Notify Division Superintendent of Changes Needed in Offices.— Employés should notify their Division Superintendent of any changes or alterations needed in their cars, and must not go to the railroad company with any requests or suggestions as to what alterations or changes they think should be made.

Sec. 786. Employés must Assist Special Agents. In all cases Special Agents of the Post-Office Department, presenting proper credentials, must be given any assistance or facility they may ask, and in no case must the fact of a Special Agent being on the train be communicated by one employé to another. No excuse will be taken for any violation of this section.

Sec. 787. Presence of Special Agents not to be Reported.-No entry should be made in the attendance book of the fact that any Special Agent has ridden in the Office.

Sec. 788. Accidents to Mail-Trains to be Reported.-When any accident occurs to any mail-train, the employé in charge of the mail will at once make a full report of the same to his Division Superintendent. This is in addition to notation on trip report.

Sec. 789. Hooks Prohibited in Handling Mail-Bags.-The use of hooks in handling mail-bags is forbidden.

Sec. 790. Courtesy to Public Enjoined.-Employés must observe, in their official intercourse with the public and with each other, the strictest courtesy; and must endeavor, by active and intelligent effort, to promote the positive interest of the service and of the public.

Sec. 791. Delivery of Mails at Catch-Stations.-At catch-stations, where cranes are erected for the exchange of mails without slacking the speed of trains, the pouch must never be kicked off, but must be thrown off by hand to a distance of at least ten feet from the track, so as to prevent the pouch from being drawn under the train.

Sec. 792. Rules of Railway Companies Observed. The rules and regulations of the railway companies, not in conflict with these instructions, must be respected and obeyed.

Sec. 793. Ignorance of Rules no Excuse for Violations.-Ignorance of the foregoing instructions will not be considered an excuse for the violation of the same, and the violation thereof will be considered a sufficient cause for immediate removal.

Sec. 794. Local Agents under Supervision of Supt. R. M. S. only.-Local agents are entirely under the supervision of the Superintendent of Railway Mail Service of the Division in which the point at which they are stationed is located, and will look to him only for all instructions. Division Superintendents will keep a record of all errors in forwarding mail made by local agents in the same manner as that of errors made by employés is kept. They will send to each local agent in their division a slip such as is sent to other employés, stating the errors which the local agent has made in forwarding the mail from the point at which he is stationed.

Sec. 795. Transfer and Delivery of Mails.-Local agents are required to superintend and assist in the transfer and delivery of all mails at the points where they are stationed, as far as possible; to inform themselves thoroughly in relation to the routes over which mails should pass that are transferred at that point, and of designations of routes and mails generally, in order that they may be able, in cases where mails are missent or incorrectly put off, to dispatch them by the proper trains; to keep themselves correctly informed of the hours of arrival and departure of all trains upon which mails are carried, and to notify the Division Superintendent of Railway Mail Service, in writing, of any change of schedule whereby railroad connections may be made or missed, to the end that the quickest possible dispatch of mails may be secured.

Sec. 796. Vigilance in Guarding Mails.-Local agents are expected to use extraordinary vigilance in guarding the mails under their charge, which must not be left for a moment exposed, day or night, and especially in making transfers where there is a considerable portage between trains; they should accompany the mails upon the wagon in all cases possible, where there is no authorized employé in charge of the same, and sit in such position at all times as to be able to instantly detect the loss of a pouch or sack. Frequent losses have been occasioned by a disregard of this latter requirement.

Sec. 797. Supervision of Messenger Service.-Local agents will report to their Division Superintendents every irregularity in the messenger service at their stations which may come to their knowledge.

Sec. 798. Checking Mails in Transit.-Special effort should be made to check off all mail-bags in transit so that it may be known with certainty, both at the time and at any subsequent period, exactly what mails are transferred at the station; and it is hoped that an actual notation of this at the time of the transfer can be made to advantage by having lists prepared in convenient form of all the mails to be transferred, with columns on either side in which a check mark opposite each name of a sack or pouch will be all the record that need be taken at the actual time of making the transfer; this to be afterward entered in the permanent book of record.

Sec. 799. Daily Reports.-Local agents should keep a daily record of the arrival and departure of mails, mail-trains, and mail-wagons at their stations, and make a daily report to the Superintendent of Railway Mail Service for the Division in which their station is situated of all failures of railroads to make their regular mail connections, of all irregularities in the transmission of the mails, and in the service by mail wagon. A daily report regarding each of these features should be made whether there is a failure or not.

Sec. 800. Examinations of Local Agents.-Examinations will be made of local agents from time to time: First of all, concerning their knowledge of the current titles and numbers of trains arriving at and departing from their stations; the mails to be transferred and the arrival of mail-trains; subsequently, when deemed desirable, concerning distribution and other information more particularly applicable to employés on duty on the routes. It should also be noted whether they are thoroughly informed as to the correct terminal titles of routes concerning which they ought to be conversant.

Sec. 801. Arrivals and Departures must be Recorded.—A record of arrivals and departures must be kept at each local mail agency, in which each local mail-agent and assistant will sign his exact time of going on duty and leaving duty at station each day. At the end of each month this record will be sent to the Division Superintendent for inspection.

Sec. 802. Handling Registered Matter.-In special cases local agents may be required to receipt for, transfer, and deliver registered packages; in which case the registers must be entered in a book of record, which will be furnished for that purpose, and a receipt obtained from the postmaster, or employé to whom the packages are delivered. Local agents are positively prohibited from transferring registered matter except as above instructed.

Seo. 803. Absence. Each local agent is forbidden to absent himself from duty, or to exchange duties with other employés in other branches of the service, or to employ and transfer his duties to a substitute without written permission from the Superintendent Railway Mail Service for his Division, and when such leave is granted, he will be required to furnish a suitable and competent substitute (who must be sworn), at his own expense, to perform his duties during his absence, such arrangement to be evidenced by memorandum in writing, signed by all the parties concerned, and to be filed with the Division Superintendent. But no local agent shall be absent for a period aggregating more than sixty days in any one year (computing from January first), nor more than thirty consecutive days, without special authority from the Department.

See sections 502, 503. Instructions to Paying Postmasters,

Sec. 804. Courtesy Enjoined.-It is especially enjoined upon all local agents to observe in their official intercourse with the public and railroad officials or employés the strictest courtesy, and endeavor by active and intelligent effort to promote the positive interest of the service and the public.

Sec. 805. Local Agents Governed by General Instructions to Employés.In addition to these special instructions to local mail-agents, they will also be governed by the general instructions to employés of the railway mail service when applicable.