The record-union. [volume] (Sacramento, Calif.) 1891-1903, 1892-04-01
POSTAL TELEGRAPH.
Members of the Board of Trade In
formally Discuss the Subject.
A Determination to Keep Sacramento
in the Front-How the Proposed
System VIII Work.

There was to have been a meeting of
the Board of Trade last evening. but a
quorum did not put in an appearance,
and all official business had to be sus-
pended.
Those who were present, however, in
dulged in an informal discussion, which
was Interesting. The main subject on
which they talked was the proposition TO
establish telephone and telegraph sys-
tenn in connection with the postal service,
as suggested by Postmaster-G eneral Wan
anaker in his report to Congress. twill
be remembered that at a recent meeting
of the Board Of Trade the Postal Commit
tee of that body made q special report on
this proposition and highly approved it,
concluding with the suggestion that Sac
ramento take the initial step in grand
effort to have the proposed auxiliary sys-
tenn established. In accordance with the
committees suggestion the board sent
circulars TO all OF the Boards OF Trade i'll
the United States, calling upon them to
consider the matter and lend assistance.
WORKING WELL.
AT last evenings gathering the Secre-
tary reported that great many favorable
replies had been received and were COM
ing III daily; also, one from the Post
inaster-General, thanking the Sacramento
merchants and complimenLing them on
| their public-spiritedness
the sense OF those member. present
was that now that the matter had been
given good start there should be no leu
ting up on It, and that Sacramento should
continue to lead in the effort until il
| reached successful conclusion it was
agreed that, while assistance from the
Hast would ha J. mi
special endeavor should be made to
thoroughly organize the movement on
the Pacific Coast. and TO that end the
Postal Committee was asked to send
special communications to the forty or
more Boards of Trade and commercial
organizations throughout the coast, call
ing upon them 10 be diligent in the
matter.
WHAT THE PLAN Is.
| AS one board member explained last
evening" the Postmaster Generals idea
| briefly, IS TO contract with existing or
new telegraph companies for the trans
mission of letters by telegraph, as it
were, at reduced rates, in consideration
! of their collection and delivery in cities
and towns whore the free-delivery serv-
ice OF the PosJof1ice Department is in
! vogue, by the regular force of carriers.
/ The General not only be-
! lieves that this doyetailing OF two great
! machines would enable the public to send
| kilograms at two-thirds, if not one-half
of the present cost, but that the increased
! business which would be involved would
maintain, il it did not increase, the rev.
enue OF the contracting telegraph COM
! panies. The practical operation Of the
/ scheme would be this: The people of
! Sacramento, say, would be able to drop
/ letters and have them collected on the
regular lines Of the carriers, telegraphed at
20 10 fbajp jt,o
them delivered by the regular carriers.
Answers would come back the same
! way.
THE TELEPHONE.
! With the addition of the telephone to
| the postal service-a departure which the
| Postmaster-Ge has advocated this
year Tor the first time-all the suburbs of
given city where the telephone eX-
tended but the telegraph might not,
would be brought into electrical commu-
nication with ali other such neighborhoods
and with the addition of the two other
schemes, namely, the rural free delivery
and collection of maii-that is, the appli-
cation OF the carrier system to small
! towns, villages and farming districts;
and, second, house to house collection as
we'll as delivery Of mail, which would be
provided for by the adoption of door letter
| boxes opening outward and inward both
it is easy TO be seen that almost every
body'S door would be in electrical COM
munication Except for the short interval
erquired to collect ana deliver with al
most every other PERSONS door.
RURAL FREE DELIVERY.
Experiments with the rural free deliv-
cry, and the house to house collections.
are already proving their feasibility
and economy, and Postmaster General
Wanamaker predicted in his annual re-
port that it will not be long before the
telegraph and telephone Will be Coop
Grating with the Postofiice Department
for the transmission of ten-cent kilograms
and three-cent telephone messages. Even
with the adoption of the postal telegraph,
without the telephone. the benefit OF
electrical communication will be brought
within the reach of persons living in the
suburbs of cities, because they would
have, as with letters now, the privilege
OF mailing postal kilograms, with or with
out special stamp as now, to the nearest
postal telegraph station for transmission
by wire.