The Austin weekly statesman. (Austin, Tex.) 1883-1898, 1894-11-29

L NAuoo uluIIeT,
une privilege given to publishers of news
, WIZ pb;h anu magazines, the worst of all
i Mnch Is under the act of March 3 1881
10 mail sample copies thereof NJ tbo
pound rate of postage. Before this FOO
iloeral privilege existed, l am inclined
10 thlnk that very few really illegitimate
lraue papers were ever admitted TO the
mails as second class matter"
..nadler commenting on the great in
Inc bogus trade paper, not devoted to
tne advertising of any particular trade
Is another Illustration of the same abuse
OF the mails. Of great moment in con-
nection with the abuse / am discussing is
crease in the mailing of fraternal insur-
ance publications as second class matter
ana showing the enormous increase of
| trafhc and the act of congress admitting
them, Mr.. Bissell suggests the remedy
in the following:
IF it be the policy of congress to con-
tlnue the privileges of second class rates
to benevolent and fraternal societies,
then the remedy l would suggest would
be an amendment of the law limiting
this rate to them and to legitimate news
papers and periodical magazines. l be-
lleve that one years experience under
such limitations would demonstrate that
all legitimate newspapers and periodical
magazines may be transmitted through
our mails from the publishers into the
hands of the subscribers free of all costs.
The postmaster general does not favor
the postal telegraph system advocated by
his predecessor. The conditions in this
country, he says, are such as would en-
ormously increase the large deficit. He
takes as an example the system in Great
Britain, which is comparatively small
tnrritOrU and ShnNUc thot tho nnSrnl tnla-
graph entails total annual loss of about
100000. He points out that in a
country where the territory is so large
the cost of postal telegraph would far
exceed any possible receipts or benefits. l"
Mr.. Bissell gives the following daily av-
erage of business in the report, which
shows the vastness of the postal service:
Number of miles of post route run,
L. 100000; number of stamps manufac-
tured, 100000; number of envelopes
manufactured, /, 100000; number of pos
tai cards manufactured, 100000; num-
Der of pieces mailed, 5,700,000; number
of letters mailed, 100000; number of
pieces of mail matter distributed by postal
clerks, 27,500,000; number of pieces
handled in dead letter Office, $4,000; daily
transactions in money order business,
81, 100, 900; daily expenses, $231, 100"
ht SCutlu III bCllSNCc Al
civil service in the department. He
says: "If the system has produced such
good results in the clerical force of the
department it is reasonable to inquire
whether something of the like could not
be applied with good advantage to the
lower grades of postmasters. For more
than one generation the American people
have been trained to regard the post
Office as inseparable from the varying
fortunes of the two great political par
ties, and in some instances, even as le-
Ultimately following the vicissitudes of
mere factions within a party. This fall
lacy is to be deplored. The intelligence
of our people has long outgrown the no.
ton that any one political party enjoys
a monopoly of administrative talent.
''The local postOffice is closely connected
with the everyday life of the people who
patronize it and nothing is further from
the principles of home rule and majority
Yet this is what happens and is bound to
happen as long as the pOstoffice remains
in the public mind, and hence in the
practice of the government, as associated
with politics. The postal service must
either be taken out of the political field
altogether and surrounded with the same
conditions which cOnduce to the health
of private business or be divided for ad-
ministrative purposes into two sections,
the one political and the other non-polit-
ical, each under a separate head, so that
the executive authority on the non-polit-
ical side shall not be required to give
any of his thought to the improvement of
the postal system"
Mr.. Bissell refers to the bill now pend
ing in congress to relieve the postmaster
general of the responsibility of postottice
appointments. Commenting upon this
bill the postmaster general says:
"Whether such a plan is or is not the
best that can be devised, it is at least
the formulation of a plan which is en-
titled to the most earnest and immediate
consideration and may become n founda-
ton upon which to build. What is earn
estly desired and what daily appears
more of necessity is legislation of some
kind which will insure an Improvement
upon the present methods"
Mr.. Bissell closed his report with a re-
quest that a new building be provided for
the postoffice department. He says in
terest on the cost of an adequate build
ing would be less than the amount OF
rent paid.