Marshall County Republican. (Plymouth, Ind.) 1856-1878, 1862-02-06


not. and propose to give you my expert
Ience on this subject. / propose to show
that by receiving their papers through the
mails the people viii get them cheaper than
they now do, and that il win not only
swell the revenue. but increase the benefit TO
the people. In one town we get all our
news from the Chicago dailies which reach
there about ten o'clock in the morning.
and the people buy them by hundreds, pay
ing five cents for single number. or TWEEN
ty cents week for them. which amounts
to SIC. 40 a year The subscription to the
highest priced Of these dailies, by mail. is
300 yeai. The postage upon each pa
per. il carried within the State where print
ed. is quarter Of cent. If paid one quar-
ter in advance: il carried to another State
outside of that where il was printed. half a
cent. The postage on a newspaper. there
fore, published in Illinois and carried to o
subscriber in Indiana. Wisconsin,. or any
other State. being half cent apiece. is 81.
Sc per year. making the cost Of the paper
$3.50 year. instead of 1910. which they
now pay. Let me look at the effect in
Ohio.
have here lettor from q gentleman
in Ohio. / will not trouble the House by
reading il at full length. but can state its
contents: the Cleaveland papers are deliv-
cred ty newslcalers in the towns Of north
eru Ohio at a shilling week. That makes
SO. so year. The subscription price is
five dollars. The postage of one quarter
of cent on each newspaper carried within
the State would make the cost to a sub
scriber s57S. He now pays $3.50. 1t is
true that subscribers receiving their papers
through the express companies get them a
few moments earlier that. they get them
through the mails; but they might as we'll
wat for their newspapers until the mails
are distributed. as wait for their letters.
which may be on matters oflife and death.
Therefore. the transmission of newspapers
through the mails would not be any in
crease of burden on the subscribers. but
would. on the contrary reduce the price oil
their newspapers and would also swell the
revenue of the Post Office Department.
But I am told that it would be impossi-
bic to carry ont the law, because the car
rying Of newspapers in the mails would
make the mail matter too enormous; and be-
cause the post Office clerks could not IN
the night time transact this business, and
have the newspapers distributed in time
for the morning mail The solution Of
that difficulty is that this can be done un,
der such regulations as Postmaster Gener-
al may prescribe. Whenever we have 9
mail train delivering mails along its route
VIC have route agent employed. he
comes to the cars just in time to be or
board before starting of the cars. because
ne has nothing to do but distribute the
mail as the train goes along All that We
would have to do is to require the route
agent to be on hand an hour before the car!
start. TO receive these packages Of papers
as they arrive from the various newspaper
offices, and distribute them through the va
rious boxes in his car. All this work car
be done before the starting of the cars
How IS .his thing done now? ! have en-
deavored to acquain.. myself with the sys
tenn by riding often. when travelling. in tn
post Office car. The papers are braugh
down to the train in the early morning
and are taken charge of by the express
agent. who has also to attend to his othe
business. checking receipts for shipment o
boxes. bales. fruit. de-. dc. If express
agents can do this. / do not see why route
agents connot do it also.
/ Now have answered some of the strict
ures cast by the newspapers on this BILL
/ wish to say in all candor and sincerity
that one of the structures of the press i
Just in my opinion, and we ought to be al
ways willing to Acknowledge that w
are wiser to-day than we were yesterday
! The objection is made, and with goot
deal of force. that, while we send DAHL
mail train once day. the night mail train
carry only the through mails. and. there
i tore, the evening papers cannot oe distrib
uted along the route. The circulation o
. the evening papers of the various cities. be
ling fewer in number. is uncomfortable com
pared with that of morning papers. Min
$ terxhs of the papers distributed are morn
? ling papers. which 60 to press at two o
: thrse o'clock in the morning. and are sen
$ to the trains which leave at six or sever
y 1t is objected that the publisher Of a
0 evening raper should not he required
: pay postage to the Government for servic
which it cannot perform, and for whic
$ service he would also have to pay expires
h companies. That is a just objection.
$ feel obliged to say. have. therefore
o with the consent Of the Post Office Com
i mittee. prepared . modification. which
) intend to present; so that If this bill be NJ
. stricken down by majority of the Hou'
after my remarks are closed. members ca
a take their choice between the bill as. Or
4 Qi,sally reported and the modification whic
III / will crescent. The Post Office Depar
! ment drew u the details Of the origin
e bill. That bill Is restrictive. prohibition,
y lin its character. / propose TO change u
o Iphraseolgoy of the bill so as to omit q
o about the licensing system WHICH, son
:. papers have said might be unfairly ana !.
le Eequitably used, shough | am certain
would not be. propose to make the bi
le perm;ssive in its character. so as to allo
u newspapers and periodicals TO be sent
re heretofore outside Of the mails on all po
q routes. except that when carried on raj
roads or steamboats, the postage shall
collected thereon at the rates now fixed
IS law. under such regulations as the Pos
ae master General may prescribe; and that Il
:. rrov;eson NJ fba elevenfh section of fhe n