Papers Relating to the Foreign Relations of the United States, Transmitted to Congress, with the Annual Message of the President, December 6, 1875, Volume I

No 85.
Mr. Williamson to Mr. Fish.

United States Legation in Central America,
Guatemala, August 26, 1874. (Received October 6.)

No. 221.]

Sir: As the amount of correspondence of a country is an element of calculation in forming an opinion of its progress in civilization, I have the honor to send you herewith a comparative tabulated statement, published on the 21st of this month by the post-office department of Guatemala.

It is said to be the first public paper of the kind ever published in Central America. I shall take the liberty of suggesting to the postmaster-general, whom I know quite well, and who is one of the most progressive men I have met with in Central America, that it would be well to show, in his next statement, the amount of domestic and foreign correspondence separately, and also to make separate columns by countries for foreign correspondence.

I have, &c.,

GEO. WILLIAMSON.

[Inclosure in No. 221.]

Comparative statement of the correspondence coming in and going oat, by the general administration of mails of Guatemala, for the years 1870, 1871, 1872, and 1873.

Years.	Received.		Sent.		Total.		Receipts.	Disbursements.
	Letters.	Printed matter.	Letters.	Printed matter.	Letters.	Printed matter.
1870	41,208	11,961	38,745	10,220	79,953	22,136	$14,268 40	$13,677 56
1871	39,300	13,318	33,838	12,603	73,138	25,912	15,783 00	14,926 40
1872	51,298	19,625	47,051	24,283	98,349	43,908	22,173 50	21,723 34
1873	59,280	20,863	54,236	21,184	113,516	42,047	21,232 78	21,144 70

General administration of the mails.

Guatemala, August 21, 1874.

R. TOLEDO.