Barbour County index. [volume] (Medicine Lodge, Kan.) 1880-current, 1897-05-19
RAILROAD MAIL SERVICE.
EXCESSIVE CHARGES PAID BY
THE GOVERNMENT.
Besides Paying for Carrying the Ma 1,
the Government Pays Yearly Rent for
Mail Cars Eq al to and More than the
First Cost or the Cars.

Mail Cars Eq al to and More than tho
First Cost OF the Cars.
In a former article in The Repre-
sentative showed many advantages
that would result from the govern
ment ownership of railroads. I will
now show how the railroads plumber
the people by exorbitant charges for
carrying the mail. When we consider
the large number of men employed by
the poetoffice department, the immense
amount Of business done, and the
large area over which it operates, it is
subordinates do their work efficiently
and honestly. There are few defalca-
tions or malfeasances in Office. The
one great exception to this OCCURS in
contracts with railroads for carrying
the mail. If the people really knew
the amount of rascality there is con-
nected with letting the contracts for
carrying the mail there would be a
reckoning somewhere. The prices
charged by the railroads are so fabu-
lous that one is tempted to believe he
is reading the widest romance when
he is reading only the simple facts.
Let us give some of them. On page 81,
of Postmaster General Wilson's report
for 1895 it is stated that the average
price for carrying the mail is eight
cents per pound for an average dis
lance of 44S miles, The same state
ment is made on page So of Bissell's re-
port for 1894. Now the Texas and
Southern Pacific railroad carries mer-
chandise from New Orleans to San
Francisco, distance of $500 miles for
two-fifths of cent a pound. For car
rying one pound of mail the same dis
lance the charge is A cents. In other
words the government is charged fifty
times as much for carrying the mail as
private individual is charged for car
rying merchandise. Is not this an
boil? and to make him feel like boil
ing some other ones blood?
But this is not all Besides paying
this fabulous price for carrying the
mail the government rents from the
roads the cars in which it is carried.
What rent does it pay? See if you can
hold your temper while you read.
There are 500 postal cars in use which
cost less than $4,000 each; that is to
say the postal cars are worth less than
100000. For the use of these cars
the government pays the railroads
5000, 900 each year. A car lasts for
twenty years. Therefore the govern
ment pays the railroads $72, 900, 900 for
the use of cars worth only So, 900, 900, a
clear steel from the government of
$40, 600, 0OO
Besides these two frauds there is still
another. In the month set apart for
the weighing of the mails the roads
ship vast numbers of sacks of congress
ional mail, books, pamphlets, ETC., to
points on their lines, and then reship-
ping them again and again until the
weighing is complete, to swell the
gross weight on which they are to re-
ceive pay for the next four years. The
government ownership of railroads
will stop these gigantic frauds; and
that is the only way to stop them. The
fact that the present administration is
completely controlled by the railroads
was proved in the senate short time
ago. Senator Butler offered an amend
ment to the postal appropriations bill
providing that the government should
not pay as rental for any postal car
more than ten per cent of its value.
Although this rental is twice the value
of the cars the amendment was voted
down. With these frauds eliminated
by the government ownership of the
roads and the increase in business that
would result from a reduction of rates
letters could be sent for one cent and
postal cards for one-half of a cent
Let the government own the railroads
the telegraph and the telephone. Their
let the telephone and telegraph be
placed under the management of the
postal department and the people viii
be relieved from three of the creates
monopolies on earth. But this canno
be accomplished until the Populist.
are placed in power. e. R. Lynch.
Moro Gold ExDorta