St. Paul daily globe., 1891-12-04

one tnat remains beyond our reach, is
electricity. Its practical value has been
known for half century, yet the chief
servant of all the people, the postoffice,
which by its equipment is able to make
the largest and most benefcient use of
1t. is so limited in its authority that it
can only adopt the slower methods, and
a man out of money in San Francisco
must stop six days and pay so board
while he waits on the mail to bring
$50 money order from New York. The
two great servants for the people, the
postoffice and the telegraph, should be
reunited, and the telephone brought in
to enhance the value of the combination.
Public interests, private needs, and the
popular will call for these agencies to
perfect the great postal system of this
country. SiXty-fOur millions of people
are taxing themselves today to the
amount of Sc, 100000 annually to main
tain the pOSt0ffice plant, and are denied
the right to vitalize this magnificent
machinery with the mightiest force
which science has given to render that
machinery most effective. So soon as
the postoffice can blend it with its own
system. and use its own forces already
under pay, telegraphic rates will be re-
duced. The telegraph and telephone,
Dy their very nature are limited to the
service of cheap and rapid exchange of
communication between the people, and
this is what the postOtfice was founded
for.
The rapid transmission of corre-
Spondence is part of the business and
proper duty of the poStoffice depart
ment, and it does not fill its functions
or perform its full duties until it oper-
ateS the telegraph, the most rapid
means OF the transmission of intelli-
gence. [ therefore respectfully request /
that authority be given to the pOstm as
ter general 10 contract for the lease of
wires for the transmission of CORE
spondence by telegraph or telephone
and connect post offices with telegraph
ana telephone offices, and that an ap-
propriation of $500. 900 be made toward
this end; the rates to be charged
for such correspondence to be fixed
from time to time by the postmaster
general, subject to the approval of con-
gresS.
Free Delivery Systems.
The report says: The rural free de-
livery experiment is Oh trial in forty
six communities. In two places, Hills
borO, n. D., and Hanover, n. H., this
service was begun, but was discontinued
because the poStmaSters failed to secure
responsible carriers for the maximum
compensation of 1912 per annum for one
"a WV NOAlS pei QdN. IlCSuljS
show total increase of gross receipts |
III thirty-nine of the fOrty-Six expert |
mental free delivery offices, amounting |
to S6,213.49, and total decrease of |
gross receipts in seven of the offices |
amounting to 07.39. leaving a balance |
OF S5,5O6. 10 of increase of gross receipts. |
This is, I'M deed, wonderful showing. |
1t Is, of course, evident that, while the |
free delivery can be extended to i'm |
~ hn
pense, it is not to be expected that |
there will not be other areas which will |
not contribute any profit, and would |
cause losses. Preference would be |
given to the districts where loss could |
not arise.
The postmaster general recommends
the passage of bill TO entitle all towns
of population between 5000 and not |
exceeding 10000 to the privilege of free
delivery, saying that, though the step
from populations of 10000 down to pop
ulationS of 5000 is long, he thinks the
remarkable success of free delivery ex-
pertinent justifieS the expectation that
nothing but beneficial results would
follow.
Postal Repositories.
The postmaster general argues siren
uously for places of deposit for the peo-
pies savings. lie reiterates his plan
of last year, and adds: Out of 65,OOO,-
COO people in the United States ii is be-
lieved that there must be 12,OOO 900 men
who work at wages to earn living, yet
1t is charged that abundant facilities
for storing of mOneyexlst under the care
OF the government for the rich man in
the national banks, and that no proviS-
ion is made for the laboring man. [
am more than ever convinced of the
wisdom of allowing to the frugal and
thrifty workman. and especially to
working women and youth, the priv
ilege OF using the postoffices as places of
deposit for small sums. The deposits,
never exceeding say $500 or at the ut
most 500 from one person, could not
lnJuriOuSlY affect the old savings bank
system, but would feed them by trans
fer OF the larger sums accumulated at
the postotfice repositories.
Another plan, quite simple and thor
oughly practical, would be to issue at
the pOStOffice nOn-negOtiabIe certificates /
of postal deposit in sums of $40, S2u, $50
and 500, bearing interest at the rate of
half cent day on the dollar ($1.S215
per year,, after the first of the month |
following the date of deposit, and
principal and interest payable on de-
mand at any money order office by |
proper Endorsement and Identification
under regulations of the postmaster
general. The department now handles
over one hundred millions annually of |
the peoples money in the money order
transfers, and is thoroughly equipped |
to take charge Of small savings.
One-Cent Postage.
Touching lower postage rates, Mr..
Wanamaker says: To reduce letter
postage to uniform rate of one cent |
means exactly that the department will
lose half of this amount of receipts.
One-half would be $50. ZIG, 064.75. We |
have to face in this problem. assuming |
that it is right for solution by 1893,
clear loss to the revenue of not less than
100000 under present conditions,
which, if the department were to re-
ceive its dues in regard to the credits
belonging to it, would be reduced to
deficit of from 100000 600 to $1l ,000, 900.
l have heretofore stated that one cent
postage will be successfully demanded
in time. believe that time is not far
off. but it certainly ought not to be
asked for so long as any deficit appears
in the revenues of the postal service;
and here l wish to reiterate that it
ought not TO be asked for then until
many Improvements and extensions of
the service are provided for. Clerks in |
postoffices ought to be fairly paid; they
ought not to be overwOrked; they ought
10 have rooms in better buildings; let
ter carriers ought not to be weighted
down like pack-horseS: railway postal
clerks should be paid for the dangers
they face daily; the great majority of
postOffices ought to be better equipped;
rural free delivery, considered to be a
successful experiment, should be widely
extended. These things ought to be
done, but they can never be consum-
mated so long as a deficiency in the
postal revenues stares an appropriation
committee in the face.
Newspapers Could Go Free.
If books alleged to be periodicals
were properly classified, and sample
copies of newspapers. except to rea-
sonable number, were classified as any
other merchandise the increased row |