Wood County reporter. [volume] (Grand Rapids [i.e. Wisconsin Rapids], Wis.) 1857-1923, 1873-06-05
Newspapers and the New Postal Act.

Some hope has been expressed that the
Postmaster General would not insist upon
rigid Interpretation of the new postal
law; but that, taking into consideration
the fact that the object of the amendment
adopted to the bill by the Senate, and
concurred in by the House, was not gener-
ally understood, and that an attempt was
made to pass an explanatory bill continu-
ing the free transmission of certain news
papers, he would use his privilege of con
STRUNG doubtful acts, and suspend the &C
ton of that particular clause affecting the
press until the plain intent of Congress
should be made manifest.
Much as we condemn the spirit which
prompted the adoption of this amend
ment, and lament the injustice thus done
to newspapers, especially those published
in the country, we do not see how the
Postmaster-G General can avoid enforcing
the law The power of that officer to in
terpret laws does not extend to those
whose import is plain and unmistakable,
but only to clauses of doubtful meaning.
There is no question about the intention
of this law; and the fact that many mem
bers did not know the scope Of it until at
ter its passage does not relieve the Post
masterGeneral of the duty of obeying it.
The provision is in plain terms: Pro
vided, That all laws permitting the trans
mission by mail Of any free matter, aotat-
eaer 1t be, are hereby repealed" This pro-
vision cuts off the free transmission of
exchanges" and of papers in the county
of publication. These are its worst fea-
lures, so far as newspapers are concerned.
There are abundant reasons why county
papers and exchanges should be trans
mitted free. We give millions every year
to support free schools, because we be-
lieve that general diffusion Of intelli-
gence will contribute to the general inter
ests of society. But the press to-day is
the greatest Fducator, and anything that
encourages and developes active and in
telligent journalism deserves the friendly
countenance of the government. a gen
eral interchange of newspapers enables the
journal published in the remotest section
of the country to spread before its reader
a summary of news in every part Of the
land 1t is not supposed that the neces-
sity of paying postage will do away with
this system of exchange to any ruinous
extent; but it will impede intelligence
and embarrass in some degree the
publishers of papers, especially those in
the country-wLick is precisely what is
contrary to the interests Of the people to
do. There arc now on the exchange list
of the Inter- Ocean nearly 1900 newspa-
pers, coming from every quarter of the
United States and portions of Europe.
The postage on these papers will amount
to $500 Or $500 per annum. Our country
| exchanges have, probably, from % to 200
papers on their lists in $ rnilar way, the
postage on which, if continued, will
amount to from $40 to $50 a year. The
hardship in this respect, therefore, is not
so great as would appear at first glance.
The greater misfortune will be the tax
levied in the way of postage on the coun-
ty circulation of papers, the cost to sub
scribers being thereby increased, and the
| circulation Of these valuable mediums of
! local intelligence being, to some extent,
at least, retarded and decreased. Neither
does an estimate of the revenue to be de-
rived from the new system promise to be
| such as to warrant the imposition of such
a clog upon journalism. There are in the
| United States, in round numbers, $500
newspapers and periodicals. Of this
number STA are dailies, 107 tri-weeklies,
| rs semi-weeklies 4 200 weeklies, SO semi
monthlies, 622 monthlies, Ii bi-monthlies
| and 40 quarterlies.
For convenience we take the two
classes, dailes and weeklies. The circu
| lation of the weekly papers is stated al