Sunday 4 March 2012

Rural Route Notices 1921 to 1931


Beginning in the August 1921 periodic notices began to appear in the monthly Postal Guide Supplements to address a problem with the Rural Route delivery of unaddressed circulars.  The August 1921 notice read:

“Notice to Postmasters of Distributing Offices for Rural Routes.- It has been brought to the attention of the Department that in certain instances, Rural Mail Couriers have accepted Advertising Literature for distribution direct from the advertisers or agents, this literature bearing no postage.

Postmasters of distributing offices for Rural Routes are accordingly to warn Royal Mail Couriers that it is a violation of Postal Regulations to accept for distribution any matter not mailed in the regular manner, and which does not comply with regulations in regard to postage.”

The wording of a notice was changed slightly in the November 1925 supplement to further clarify the term advertising literature. It read:

“Notice to Postmasters of Distributing Offices for Rural Routes.- It has been brought to the attention of the Department that in certain instances, Rural Mail Couriers have accepted hand bills, notice of meetings, etc., for distribution direct from the advertisers or agents, these items bearing no postage.

Postmasters of distributing offices for Rural Routes are accordingly to warn Royal Mail Couriers that it is a violation of Postal Regulations to accept for distribution any matter not mailed in the regular manner, and which does not comply with regulations in regard to postage.”

The same notice was printed in the March 1929 Supplement this time adding the words “circulars soliciting newspaper subscriptions” to the material descriptions


The March 1929 supplement notice was subsequently repeated in the March 1930, March 1931, November 1931 and December 1931 monthly supplements. The warnings may have repeated in subsequent monthly supplements but I do not have access to further supplements.

everyhouseholder

Friday 2 March 2012

Postal Guide Information 1904-1914

In my last posting I indicated that I would provide some analysis of the 1889 to 1904 Postal Guide changes but I am going to delay that and continue with more information from the Postal Guide and supplements.

The 1906, 1908, 1911, 1912 and 1913 Postal Guides each repeated the exact wording from the 1904 guide so I assume that the guides for the intervening years also repeated the 1904 wording.

The January 1914 Quarterly supplement offered additional clarification as follows:

Circulars, etc., Addressed "The Householder". - Circulars and similar printed matter duly prepaid may be posted for any place in Canada, addressed simply "The Householder" without the name of any person or indication of street or number; and it will be the duty of Postmasters to see that, so far as the supply sent permits, the circulars or other articles thus addressed are delvered at every house, in places where there is a free carrier delivery service, or to every family, in places where the patrons of the Post Office call at the office for their mail.

Furtrher clarification was provided in the April 1914 Quarterly Supplement. It reads:

Circulars for Boxholders on Rural Mail Routes.- Attention is drawn to paragraph 3 on page 13 of the January Quarterly Supplement whcih supercedes Section 82 on page 20 of the Postal Guide and reads as follows:-
"Circulars and similar printed matter duly prepaid may be posted for any place in Canada, addressed simply "The Householder" without the name of any person or indication of street or number; and it will be the duty of Postmasters to see that, so far as the supply sent permits, the circulars or other articles thus addressed are delvered at every house, in places where there is a free carrier delivery service, or to every family, in places where the patrons of the Post Office call at the office for their mail."
It has been decided that the arrangement indicated shall apply equally to circulars and similar printed matter intended for boxholders on the Rural Mail routes; and it will be the duty of the mail courier to see that, so far as the supply permits, circulars or other articles of printed matter addressed simply "The Householder" or "The Boxholder" are delivered into every box on his route.

Following the introduction of Rural Mail Delivery (RMD) in Canada a few years earlier this appears to be the first recognition of the extension of Every Householder mail to RMD customers.

everyhouseholder