The evening times. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1895-1902, 1897-04-26
The Important Gathering in
Washington Next Month.
THE FIFTH OF ITS KIND
1t Was Owing TO the Liberal Con-
duct of the United states at the
Preliminary Conference That
These Congresses Were Made Pos
sible-The Cost to Each Nation.

will meet in this city next month, aud its
deliberations are to take place at the old
Corcoran Art Gallery.
The first of these congresses was held
III BeTRe on September Is, 1874. The
second met n Paris, in the Bourbon Palace,
in MAY, 1878, the year of the exposition.
This congress was an especially important
one because of the treaty forming a
Universal Postal Union" which was
adopted and signed by the countries which
were parties to the general postal treaty OF
BerRe, and by delegates from nine other
CONFINES The United States was repre-
scented at the congress by DANES n Tyner,
at that time First Assistant Postmaster
General, and Joseph II. Blackfan, super
intendent Of forcIgn mails
The third congress accepted the hospi-
tally OF Portugal, and met on February 4,
1888, in Lisbon, its meeting being held in
the hall CT the supreme courU Vienna was
the scene of the next congress, on March
20, 1891. At this congress Washington
was unanimously and toy reclamation, Sc
lected for the meeting of the fifth congress.
1t is altogether fitting and proper that
the Worlds Postal Congress should honor
this Government by holding one of its meet
ings at her capital, since he United States
took the initiative in postal reforms. As
long ago as 1868 Postmaster General Blair,
moved hy the complicated and inconvcn-
lent methods in regard to foreign mail
then in vogue, requested the Secretary Of
State to invite a conference of the postal
authorities of Europe and America Ito
recommend to their governments the adop-
ton i'm international postal relations Of
a uniform standard of weight, uniformity
OF rates and conditions, a uniform base for
sea and land transit charges, and, if prac-
ucablc. registration aud muney-oTder sys-
tens
This conference was held in Paris May,
1868. and was attended by the leading
postal officials OF Austria, Belgium, Costa
Rica, Denmark, Spain, the United States,
France. Great Britain, Italy, the Meth
lands, Portugal, Prussia, the Sandwich
Islands. Switzerland, and the Hanseatic
cities The United States was represented
by John 4. KaSSon who had then recently
retired from the position Of First Assistant
Postmaster General MI kaSSon made an
able and influential delegate, and before
the adjournment Of the conference he was
compimented by the s wisS minister, who,
speaking for the whole convention, said:
IF the deliberations ofthe conference have
led to results from which q favorable in
fluence upon future postal treaties may
be expected. these results are largely due
to the liberal and conciIiatory spirit con-
stantIy shown during the deliberations 10y
the delegate OF the government which took
the initiative in the conference
80
mails, in hisrepori for S95, which contains
an exhaustive and interesting history Of
the postal congress, the first and only Of
ficIaI account ever made bythis Government,
says:
THE idea Of union for postal purposes
does not seem to have been entertained
either by tins Government in its call for a
conference In the year 1868 or by the con-
ference itself in its deliberations. But the
ease with which the principles promulgated
by the conference were put into practice,
and the benefits accruing to the intema-
tional service by their adoption, appear TO
have prepared the various governments at
interest to receive not only without sur
prise, but as something altogether IN the
natural course, the proposition OF the pos
tai administration OF Germany INSPIRED
no doubt by the successful operation since
the year $50 of the 4 usj ro-(icrman Postal
Union, comprising sixteen separate postal
administrations Ia Uae ycaI 500. 10 con
vone a congress for the purpose OF nego-
tiatinc a general postal treaty, having for
its object the mificatioa OF the great pow
erS in so far. at least, as the formation Of
a single postal territory for the reciprocal
exchange of correspondence between
them +"
1t will be seen from this that although the
first proposition for a postal congress ongi-
nat ed with Germany, the first step toward
il was The Conference OF 1868, Tor W hicn
the United States was alone responsible.
Now all the governments of the world,
with the exception Of the Chinese empire,
belong to this congress, and it is not i'm
probable that { the coming congress that
nation viii Join.
The cost TO goyernmen of one of these
congresses is estimated at about quarter
OF a million dollars This is for legiti-
mate expense only. and not for entertain
ing the delegates. Postmaster General
Wilson asked Congress for an appIopria-
tionof 81 2, 900 last win ter, and thissum was
named in the sundry civil tall, which did
twenty-five thousand dollars, the only
money the department has at present at
its dis posal, was however, provided for in
one of the deficiency bills. Seventy-five
thousand dollars more is appropriated in
the sundry bill, making 100000 in all,
which falls far short of the estimates, and
Will hardly be adequate to conduct the
congress in a manner consistent with the
prestige the United States enjoys among
nations, but for the expenditure OF any
SUN beyond this the department will be
compelled TO assume tic responsibility.
The delegates TO the Postal Congress are
men Of influence and standing in their
own countries, and at all the capitals where
the congress has met have been splendidly
Much, of course, is expected
from Washington. and, although the con-
gress meets at an inopportune time for
its members TO see the social side of the
Capital of the United States, much win