The Scranton tribune. [volume] (Scranton, Pa.) 1891-1910, 1897-05-06

for Austria, the highest being ~ cents, we
find only two rates of and cents; In
stead of six rates fer Australia, the high
est being s.02, we find only the two rates
of 10 and 70 cents; while only two differ
ent rates were chargeable on articles for
| Greece Germany, Norway, Sweden, and
| Switzerland, and only one to Hong Kong,
Denmark, the Netherlands, Canada and
| Mexico.
Still there were reforms TO be accom-
| pltsed; and out Of the movement started
| by Postmaster General Blair grew In due
course Of time the great congress which
met at Berne on Sept. 15 1874 with dele
gates from twenty-five countries and colo
| MES. There the United states were
| again specially honored, their representa-
| tives being publicly welcomed by the pre-
| siding officer with the statement that 1t
was the United States which. in 1868, took
| the initiative In the postal reforms point
| ed out by the conference OF Paris, ana
| which the congress Of Bernc was about 70
attempt to put into practical operation
| by means of a general treaty binding upon
| all participating nations. The congress
was In session until the 9th OF October.
| 1874, when the first treaty concerning the
| creation OF a general postal union was
| signed by the representatives OF Ger
| many, Austria-Hungary, Belgium, Dem
| mark, Egypt Spain, the United States,
| Great Britain, Greece, Italy, Luxemburg,
| Norway, the Netherlands. Portugal Rou-
| mania, Russia, Servla, Sweden, Swttzer-
| land and Turkey. France signed short
| time later and Montenegro governed her
| operations by the terms of the treaty,
which began to run on the 1st of July, 1915.
| over territory containing population
of S750OO,OO0 persons.
The countries and colonies adhering to
the treaty were constituted "a single pos
| tai territory for the reciprocal exchange OF
| correspondence between their post ofic-
| es,' through the entire extent of which
| the right of transit of the malls was guar
| antced at certain rates within miximum
| limits. 1t provided for a uniform classi-
] ficatiOn of articles transmissible in inter-
| national mails and fixed uniform postage
| rates and conditions within maximum linn
| its. 1t greatly smplified the detailed and
| complicated postage accounts by provid-
| irg that each country should keep, for its
| own use, all the postage 1t collected, and
| should settle with other countries for their
| Intermediary services within the Postal
Union upon the basis of weights, instead
| of upon the basis of crates" 1t rem
| dered obligatory the forwarding of unpaid
| letters and of short-paid articles of other
| classes. 1t provided that articles should
| be reforwartled throughout the entire
| Postal Union without additional charge.
| 1t provided for a congress to convene
/
| of the treaty, each country having one
vote; and it established, at an annual eX-
pense of $4,000, an international bureau
| at Berne, to be under the supervision of
! the postal administration of Switzerland,
| charged with the duty of collecting and
| distributing postal statistics and informa-
| ton, giving opinions on questions at Issue,
and in general serving as a means of COM
| municating between the postal adminstra-
| tions. 1t also provided for arbitration In
| case any two or more administrations
| could not agree upon the Interpretation
| to be placed upon provision of the treaty.
| From that time to the present the Postal
| Union has grown steadily. 1t very soon
| outgrew it's name, and had to change the
| designation General" to "Universar' to
make the title correspond with the facts.
| OF the improvements which 1t has
wrought in the speed safety and conven-
| fence of conveyance of letters to and
| from the remotest ends of the earth, no
person or business Office having a large
| foreign correspondence need be assured.
| It's beneficient service to commerce has
| been incalculabe, and the good work is
| going on steadily, outside of the interna-
| tion field, also. its influence has been of
| the greatest advantage to the people of
| every country. 1t has stimulated indi-
| viduall governments to broaden their do
| nestle postal systems. Even so conser-
| vative a goVernmtnt as the Chinese has
| of late been walked up to the need of sup
| planting the haphazzard courier service
which has hitherto been the only means
| of communication in the interior, by a
| regular postal system between the more
| important centers of population and busi-
ness; and Norway spurred thereto by the
| increase of tourist travel in recent years,
| has established a postoffice at Spitzbcr-
| gen, probably the northernmost bit of ter
| ritory yet reached by regular mail route.