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§ 7342. (Act March 2, 1889, c. 393, § 4.) Matter relating to spurious money, etc., not mailable.

All matter the deposit of which in the mails is by this act made punishable is hereby declared non-mailable; but nothing in this act shall be so construed as to authorize any person other than an employee of the dead-letter office, duly authorized thereto, to open any letter not addressed to himself. (25 Stat. 874.)

See notes to section 3 of this act, ante, § 7341.

§ 7343. (Act March 2, 1889, c. 393, § 5.)

sons not residents of place of address.

Delivery of mail to per

Whenever the Postmaster-General is satisfied that letters or packets sent in the mails are addressed to places not the residence or business address of the persons for whom they are intended, to enable such persons to escape identification, he may direct postmasters to deliver such letters only from the post-office upon identification of persons addressed. (25 Stat. 874.)

See notes to section 3 of this act, ante, § 7341.

§ 7344. (R. S. § 3895.) Letters seized to be returned to senders. All letters, packets, or other matter which may be seized or detained for violation of law shall be returned to the owner or sender of the same, or otherwise disposed of as the Postmaster-General may direct.

Act June 8, 1872, c. 335, § 302, 17 Stat. 323.

Sec.

CHAPTER FOUR

Postage

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Sec.

ed by publisher or news agent to subscribers or news agents. 7357. Time and manner of paying postage on newspapers, etc.

7358. Postage on second-class matter mailed by publishers or news agents.

7359. Discontinuance

of newspapers, etc., stamps; regulations for collecting and accounting for postage on second-class matter; requirement of prepayment not affected.

7360. Postage on newspapers mailed to
subscribers in the county of
publication and at free-delivery
offices.

7361. Postage on second-class matter
mailed by others than publish-
ers or news agents.
7362. Postage on Congressional Record
mailed at Washington.
7363. Postage on seeds, plants, cuttings,
etc.

Sec.

7364. Quantities of identical pieces of
third or fourth class matter to
be accepted for transmission
without stamps affixed, if pre-
paid.

7365. Clothing to soldiers by mail.
7366. Postage on foreign mail-matter.
7367. Postage on irregular sea-letters.
7368. Refund of postage paid for which
service is not rendered, or in
excess of legal rate.
7369. Letters, etc., on official business,
to be transmitted free; official
envelopes.

7370. Official envelopes; indorsement
of penalty.

7371. Letters, etc., on official business
to be transmitted free; indorse-
ments on envelopes; official
mail-matter of Smithsonian In-
stitution registered free mail-
matter; repeal.

7372. Official mail-matter of National
Home for Disabled Volunteer
Soldiers transmitted free.
7373. Official mail-matter of the Bureau
of American Republics to be
transmitted free.

7374. Penalty envelopes for answers to

be inclosed in official communi-
cations to members of Congress,
etc.

7375. Free transmission by mail of
official correspondence of Su-
perintendent of Documents.

Sec.

7376. Free transmission of official mailmatter relating to census; use of official indorsement to avoid payment of postage, etc., punishable; penalty.

7377. Congressional Record, etc., under frank of members of Congress to be transmitted free.

7378. Public Documents sent and re-
ceived by Vice-President, mem-
bers of Congress, etc., to be
transmitted free.

7379. Official correspondence of Vice-
President, Members of Con-
gress, etc., to be transmitted
free; franks; limit of weight.
7380. Seeds and reports from Depart-
ment of Agriculture, mailed by
members of Congress, etc., to be
transmitted free.
7381. Franking privilege extended to
Hawaiian Islands.

7382. Matter admitted to mails under
penalty privilege restricted to
matter admissible on prepay-
ment of postage.

7383. Lending or permitting use of frank by or for any committee, organization, etc., unlawful. 7384. Reading matter for the blind to be transmitted free.

7385. Magazines, periodicals, etc., for the blind to be transmitted free.

7345. (R. S. § 3896.) Prepayment of postage.

Postage on all mail-matter must be prepaid by stamps at the time of mailing, unless herein otherwise provided for.

Act June 8, 1872, c. 335, § 150, 17 Stat. 302.

Postage on first-class matter was required to be prepaid by Act March 3, 1879, c. 180, § 9, post, § 7353. Postage on second-class matter mailed by the publisher or news agent was required to be prepaid by Act June 23, 1874, c. 456, § 6, post, § 7357. Postage on second-class matter, when mailed by others than the publisher or news agent, was required to be prepaid by Act June 9, 1884, c. 73, post, § 7361. Postage on third-class matter was required to be prepaid by Act March 3, 1879, c. 180, § 17, ante, § 7315. Postage on fourth-class matter was required to be prepaid by Act March 3, 1879, c. 180, § 21, ante, § 7328.

The return or remailing of second, third, and fourth class matter before the postage has been fully prepaid was prohibited by Act June 13, 1898, c. 446, § 4, Act March 3, 1903, c. 1009, § 9, and Act May 12, 1910, c. 230, post, §§ 7348-7350.

The franking privilege was regulated by Act March 3, 1875, c. 128, §§ 5, 7, and other provisions set forth post, §§ 7369-7385.

The acceptance for transmission in the mails of quantities of identical pieces of third or fourth class matter without postage stamps affixed was authorized by Act April 28, 1904, c. 1759, § 2, post, § 7364.

(R. S. § 3897. Superseded.)

This section provided that all mail-matter of the third class should be pre- paid in full in postage-stamps at the office of mailing. It was superseded by Act March 9, 1879, c. 180, § 17, ante, § 7315.

See notes to R. S. § 3896, ante, § 7345.

§ 7346. (R. S. § 3898.) Disposal of partly paid and unpaid letters. All mail-matter deposited for mailing, on which one full rate of postage has been paid as required by law, shall be forwarded to its destination, charged with any portion of the proper postage which may be unpaid, to be collected on delivery. But if any mail-matter, on which by law the postage is required to be prepaid at the mailingoffice, shall by inadvertence reach its destination without any prepayment, double the prepaid rates shall be charged and collected on delivery.

Act June 8, 1872, c. 335, §§ 151, 152, 17 Stat. 302.

This section was in part superseded by provisions authorizing the forwarding of first-class matter on which one full rate of postage has been prepaid to its destination charged with the unpaid rate, to be collected on delivery, and requiring postmasters to affix special stamps on any mail-matter on which prepayment in full has not been made, and cancel such stamps made by Act March 3, 1879, c. 180, § 26, post, § 7347, and was in part superseded by provisions prohibiting the return or remailing of second, third, and fourth class matter until the postage should have been fully prepaid, and requiring the sender, if known, to be notified of the fact of non-delivery, made by Act June 13, 1898, c. 446, § 4, post, § 7348.

§ 7347. (Act March 3, 1879, c. 180, § 26.) Disposition of part-paid first-class matter; deficiency stamps.

All mail-matter of the first class upon which one full rate of postage has been prepaid shall be forwarded to its destination, charged with the unpaid rate, to be collected on delivery; but postmasters, before delivering the same, or any article of mail-matter upon which prepayment in full has not been made, shall affix, or cause to be affixed, and canceled, as ordinary stamps are canceled, one or more stamps equivalent in value to the amount of postage due on such article of mail-matter, which stamps shall be of such special design and denomination as the Postmaster-General may prescribe, and which shall in no case be sold by any postmaster nor received by him in prepayment of postage. (20 Stat. 361.)

See notes to section 7 of this act, ante, § 7302.

A further provision of the section, omitted here, authorized commissions on deficiency stamps to fourth-class postmasters. It was superseded by Act March 3, 1883, c. 142, § 2, ante, § 7218, which prescribed the compensation of fourth-class postmasters.

Provisions for forwarding letters prepaid at the drop-letter rate of postage only, and collecting the deficient postage on delivery, were made by R. S. § 3937, post, § 7419.

§ 7348. (Act June 13, 1898, c. 446, § 4.) Second, third, and fourth class matter not to be returned or remailed until fully prepaid; notice of non-delivery.

Second, third, and fourth class mail matter shall not be returned to sender or re-mailed until the postage has been fully prepaid on the same: Provided, That in all cases where undelivered matter of these classes is of obvious value, the sender, if known, shall be

notified of the fact of nondelivery, and be given the opportunity of prepaying the return postage. (30 Stat. 444.)

See note to R. S. § 3896, ante, § 7345.

Provisions for remailing to the sender third and fourth class mail matter were made by Act March 3, 1903, c. 1009, § 9, post, § 7349.

Provisions for returning to the publisher copies of publications of the second class, mailed by a publisher at the pound rate or free in the county of publication, undeliverable at the address thereon, were made by Act May 12, 1910, c. 230, post, § 7350.

§ 7349. (Act March 3, 1903, c. 1009, § 9.) Third and fourth class matter not to be remailed to sender until fully prepaid; notice of non-delivery.

Third and fourth class mail matter shall not be remailed to sender until the proper postage has been fully prepaid on the same: Provided, That in all cases when undelivered mail matter of the third and fourth class is of obvious value, the sender, if known, shall be given the opportunity of prepaying the return postage or accepting delivery to himself or upon his order, at the office where it is held, upon the payment of one cent postage for each card notice given him, under such regulations as the Postmaster-General may prescribe. (32 Stat. 1176.)

This section was part of the postal service appropriation act for the fiscal year ending June 30, 1904, cited above.

Previous provisions for the returning or remailing of second, third, and fourth class mail matter and for notice of nondelivery were made by Act June 13, 1898, c. 446, § 4, ante, § 7348.

Provisions for transmission of mail matter relating to the Census free of postage were made by Act July 2, 1909, c. 2, § 29, post, § 7376.

Second-class publications not notice to publisher; return

§ 7350. (Act May 12, 1910, c. 230.) deliverable at address thereon; charged with third-class rate. Hereafter when copies of any publication of the second class, mailed by a publisher at the pound rate or free in the county of publication, are undeliverable at the address thereon, the postmaster at the office of destination shall promptly notify the publisher of the fact, giving the reason therefor, and copies received five weeks after the mailing of the notice to the publisher, and in no instance until two successive issues thereof have been published, shall, under such regulations as the Postmaster-General may prescribe, be separately returned to the publisher thereof charged with postage at the thirdclass rate. All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are hereby repealed. (36 Stat. 366.)

This was a provision of the postal service appropriation act for the fiscal year 1911, cited above.

Previous provisions for the return or re-mailing of second. third and fourth class mail matter were made by Act June 13, 1898, c. 446, § 4, ante, § 7348.

(R. S. § 3899. Repealed.)

This section made it punishable for any postmaster, or other person authorized to receive the postage of letters, to demand or receive a rate of postage greater than was allowed, or any other gratuity. It was incorporated into the Criminal Code in section 207 thereof, post, § 10377, and was repealed by section 341 thereof, post, § 10515.

§ 7351. (R. S. § 3900.)

No mail-matter shall

has been paid.

Postage to be paid before delivery.

be delivered until the postage due thereon

Act June 8, 1872, c. 335, § 153, 17 Stat. 303.

§ 7352. (R. S. § 3901.) Box-rents to be prepaid.

No box at any post-office shall be assigned to the use of any person until the rent thereof has been paid for at least one quarter in advance, for which the postmaster shall give a receipt.

Act June 8, 1872, c. 335, § 154, 17 Stat. 303.

Box-rents were required to be accounted for as part of the postal revenues by R. S. § 4051, post, § 7600.

(R. S. §§ 3902-3904. Superseded.)

R. S. § 3902, authorized the Postmaster-General to provide by regulation for transmitting unpaid and certified letters of soldiers, sailors, and marines to their destination.

R. S. § 3903, fixed the postage on first-class matter at three cents for each half ounce or fraction thereof.

R. S. § 3904, fixed the postage on drop-letters at two cents where free delivery was established, and one cent elsewhere, for each half ounce or frac tion thereof.

All these sections were superseded by Act March 3, 1879, c. 180, § 9, post, § 7353.

§ 7353. (Act March 3, 1879, c. 180, § 9.)

matter.

Postage on first-class

On mailable matter of the first class, except postal cards and drop. letters, postage shall be prepaid at the rate of three cents for each half ounce or fraction thereof; postal cards shall be transmitted through the mails at a postage charge of one cent each, including the cost of manufacture; and drop letters shall be mailed at the rate of two cents per half ounce or fraction thereof, including delivery at letter carrier offices, and one cent for each half ounce or fraction thereof where free delivery by carrier is not established The Postmaster-General may, however, provide, by regulation, for transmitting unpaid and duly certified letters of soldiers, sailors, and marines in the service of the United States to their destination, te be paid on delivery. (20 Stat. 358.)

Letter postage was reduced to two cents per half ounce or fraction thereof by Act March 3, 1883, c. 92, § 1, 22 Stat. 455, which was superseded by Act March 3, 1885, c. 342, § 1, post, § 7354.

Provisions for the manufacture of postal cards to be transmitted through the mails at a postage charge of one cent, including cost of manufacture, were made by R. S. § 3916, post, § 7393.

Double postal cards with two one-cent stamps were authorized by Act March 3, 1879, c. 180, § 32, post, § 7396.

Provisions authorizing the mailing of private mailing cards at the rate of postage of 1 cent were made by Act May 19, 1898, c. 347, post, § 7355.

The Postmaster-General was authorized to furnish to the public international postal cards at a postage charge of 2 cents each, including the cost of manufacture, by Act June 11, 1880, c. 206, § 1, post, § 7394.

Rates of postage on mail-matter conveyed between the United States and foreign countries may be increased or decreased by the Postmaster-General by R. S. § 398, ante, § 587.

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