Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1890-08-24
THE DISAGREEMENT AT his STORE.
All Cheap Books Should be Kept 0ut of the
Mails Because Uncle Sam Carries
Them at a Loss.
POSTAL TELEGRAPH AND BANKING.
Scheme to Have District School Teachers Distribut,
the Mail in the Country.
ESPECIAL rELreRAM TO TIE prsPArcH.,

1or week AZ tne y nlteo states hOteI. ne
has brought no work with him, and he
spends his time sitting on the hotel piazza
gossiping and telling stories to his friends.
He saws he finds Saratoga better place
than Washington to feel the real pulse of
the American people, and that he likes to
get away to find what public opinion in re-
gard to public matters really is.
asked him tonight the real story of the
exclusion of Tolstois novel, ''The Kreutzer
Sonata" from the mails. Said he:
-'The action on the Kreutzer Sonata by our
store had nothing to do with me and the
book was passed upon there long before it
came up as non-mailable matter. As to our
orders for the books, the store is divided
into departments and the head of each de-
partment attends to the business of that
department Our head of the book depart
ment passes upon all orders of our book
sales. We buy books in large quantities
and an order from us often increases the
amount OF the edition to be published.
"We often receive offers of so many of a
certain book at reduced price if we will
take them within certain number of days
and this was the offer in regard to the
'Kreutzer Sonata For some reason or other
made and when the order was sent it was
after the limit for the reduced price had ex-
pired and it was not accepted.
DRAWING THE LINE.
1--WE often order the books of noted
authors without looking into them and the
order for Tolstoi's books had been given
without an examination of it. In the mean
time the book department had heard sew
eral criticisms of the story as immoral, and
it was read with view to seeing whether it
was what we wanted to sell over our
counter. We have certain rules of selection
in our book trade and we do not sell French
novels of low grade of m orslity, the stories
Of Ouida or other books of a similar moral
tendency.
'I don't mean to say that there are not
beauties IN many of these works. Some of
the novels of Ouida abound in beautiful
passages and beautiful thoughts and have
written out some OF them in my note books.
But we class these books with those which
we have long decided not to sell and books
of this character would not be sold by us at
any price.
THE READER SAID NO.
"Well, this book of Tolstoi's was reported
by our reader as below our standard in this
regard, and for that reason we would not
sell it. All this was decided before the OBJ
lection was made to carrying it through the
mail. This objection came from an outside
party, whom 1 did not know. At the time
it came / had not read the book and don't
know that had heard of it. Every COM
plant OF this kind that comes to the Post
Office Department has to be passed upon,
and if the books are of an immoral tendency
the law provides that they must be ex-
cluded.
''The book and the matter was referred to
the Attorney General of the department
Judge Tyner. He read the book, decided
that it was indecent, and it was consequent
ly excluded. The John Wanamaker firm of
Philadelphia had nothing to do with it.
"How about yourself, Mr.. Postmaster
General, have you read it?'
HE HAS READ IT.
''I have" replied Postmaster General
Wanamaker.
"And what do you think of it ?'
81 do not think 1t is fit book for Young
girls or young men to read, and it is not a
book that would like to take home to nv
family. 1 admire Tolstoi's writing with the
exception of this one. He is a man of MANY
noble thoughts and 1 have quoted him in
some Of my addresses again and again. As
to his present novel, however, il is of q diff
fereut character and there are some parts of
it that are certainly fit for no young person
to read"
The conversation here turned to postoffice
matter and asked Mr.. Wanamaker as to
his postal telegraph scheme. Said he:
'The postal telegraph is bound to come
some time. 1t may not come during my
administration of the department but the
people have the right to have their infor-
nation forwarded in this way as we'll as by
mail, and expect to see the time when
there will be postal telephone. L believe
that telegraps would be more sacred under
the Government than they are in the hands
OF private corporations, and they would
have all the sanctity that the mails have
to-day.
POSTAL SAVINGS BANKS.
''The postal Savings Bank will also be
thing of the future, and if we could have
these they would be especially valuable in
bringing the South closer to the general
Government. The United States in this
way becomes the banker of the common
people, and confidence and trust go with the
man or institution to whom you intrust
your money"
Speaking again of the Kreutzer
Sonata and the sending of these books
through the mail it is much of q question as
to whether they ought to be admitted to the
mails at all We receive for the matter
only cent pound, and it costs us cents
pound to carry them. IF we would ex-
clude this whole class of cheap book matter
it would save the department 81, 900, 900 a
year. They are only kept in the mails
through regulation of the department, and
suppose an order from me would exclude
them. l have preferred, however, to state
the matter to the people and to ask Con-
gress to pass upon it."
II here asked Mr.. Wsnamaker as to the
statement which has gone the rounds of the
newspapers that he was laying his wires to
make himself the next Senator from Penn
sylvania, and that be had an ambition to be
President of the United States
ONLY ONE AMBITION.
He laughed as he emphatically said: "I
have no ambition to be other than a good
Postmaster General. 1t is not reasonable
for me to suppose that I can make myself
great in the role of statesmanship. NV
whole training has been that OF business
man, and while might perhaps hope to
make myself great merchant, could
hardly expect to succeed more than ordi-
narilv we'll in an untried field. I accepted
the Postmaster Geueralship with desire to
do what good could for the country and
because believe it the duty of every Amer
ican citizen to take part in such sdministra-
ton Of the Government as comes to him.
ST had for years been saying to my
friends how the Government ought to be
managed, and what would do ii I were in
power, and could not very well refuse to
accept the place when il was offered to me.
] assuredly did not take it for the SS, 600
year, which the salary of Cabinet Minister
is. As have undertaken il am anxious
to do all 1 can to improve the mail and to
IL l. Z L