The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1898-11-23

TOduS, "a CdFTieQ
in like way by Immigrant roads. For bulk
in proportion to weight, mail matter closely
resembles articles carried in freight trains
as frst-class stuff. From this stuff the aver
age earnings to the companies of the country
is not less than cents per ton mile; and
this includes the vast movement on the great
trunk lines.
WOULD BEAR HIGHER RATE.
Excluding the trunk lines the average
would be cents That average would extend
to two-thirds Of the railway mileage Of the
country. For 600 miles out on the roads run
ming west from st. Paul it is over cents and
is not excessive for the service rendered
Ihis, 1t must be remembered is for service
in freight trains and with the privilege of
loading the cars full. Transportation of this
class of goods in passenger trains would cas-
lily bear higher rate
The space contained in the average entire
postal car is nearly double that contained in
an ordinary thirty-ton freight car, and would
easily enough hold enough frst-class freight
TO give an average load throughout the run
covered by any mail route of fifteen tons. If
the companies loaded their postal cars and
compartments with frst-class merchandise in
stead of turning them over to the government
to run comparatively empty they could easily
earn. even on the great trunk lines, an aver
age OF 80 cents per mile for the full and
10 cents per mile for the compartment, and
that. too, without any considerable added
pense. On the lines out OF Chicago the earn
ings would average As cents per mile for the
full car and 221s cents per mile for the COM
partment. On the lines out of st. Paul they
would average go cents per mile for the full
car and 80 cents per mile for the compartment
What costs the company in the performance
OF the mail service is not the weight of mail
hauled. but the car space afforded. The ex-
pense for running a passenger train or a car
In passenger train is almost exactly the
came to the company, whether 1t be full or
empty Whatever occupies space In or
train puts the same cost upon the company,
whether it be light or heavy. up to the limit
of weight which the space is able to safely
carry
QUESTION OF SPACE.
But what the postal service gets and what
it must have is not the hauling of a given
amount of dead weight, but of a certain
amount OF space needed for the use Of It's en-
ployes in conducting q postoffice on wheels.
mat space has to be carried along the road
from station to station. II all that were
needed were merely place to pile up mail
bags tenth part of the floor space actually
used would be ample. One corner of "a COM
mon baggage car will hold more mail than any
full railway postofflce ever gets inside OF
1t at one time.
But the mere handling of the weight would
not do the business. Space for the pouches
Is a small fraction of the whole space re-
quired by the methods under which the mails
are now handled. These methods have most
ly developed since the plan of fixing pay by
weight was adopted At the time OF its adop-
tion the weight plan applied with at least
some small degree of fairness, because the
postoff1ce On wheels either had no existence
was confined to few great trunk lines of
limited mileage. Weight was then the main
element of the service rendered by most com
panies, and had il remained so the rates OF
pay would have been more fair. But from
weight the chief element Of the service has
necessarily changed to space, and this space
flying through the air costs the company
nearly the same regardless of how it is oc-
cupied.
Another unfalrness towards the railroads
is the practice Of readjustng compensation
at long intervals of time only. This injus-
tice bears most heavily upon the lines locat-
ed in the newer sections of the country, be-
cause there the increase in population and
development of business, carrying with them
a corresponding increase of the mails, Is
more rapid than elsewhere. The present prac-
tice in regard to reweighing is like asking
a growing youth to wear the some suit Of
clothes four years. In the older parts Of
the country each four years brings a larger
growth in the volume of mails, and even the
great trunk lines have good ground TO be dis
satisfied with the Quadriennial weighings, but
roads requires yearly readjustments of their
pay.
RATES REMAIN UNCHANGED.
On the Great Northern lines mail weighs
nearly or quite double between the weigh
ing periods. but the rate OF pay remains sta
tionary until the new weights supersede them.
This condition of things probably exists on
most OF the Western roads. The growth
in the mails is at the expense of the roads
carrying them. The government gets the
increased revenues but omits to divide the
increase with the carriers.
The weight standard of pay for carrying
the mails no longer fits the nature of the
bulk OF the service demanded by the gov
eminent and rendered by the companies The
present type of service being chiefly one
of space, should be paid for on the space
basis. This standard is not only correct
but most simple and easy 10 apDlv Hinder
it the government would pay for exactly what
IL got-no more, no less. The precise space
contained In each full car or in the postal
compartment of a car and the miles run
| would always be ascertainable, and an ac-
curate adjustment of pay would merely re
aulre simple computation. Weights would
inquire only in that small part OF the bust
ness done in baggage cars or similarly, and
so the trouble and expense of weighing would
be nearly eliminated.
Uniformity of standard. either space or
weight, throughout the country is unfair
and should be discontinued. What would be
| nberal pay for given amount of either
space or weight on the great trunk mail
routes would be unfair to the lines west
OF the Mississippi and Missouri river points
or even from Chicago. In the first place,
| trunk lines is about one-fourth less than in
the Western country. particularly in the
country occupied by the Great Northern and
other transcontinental systems. In the trunk
line country fuel is cheaper metals are
cheaper. all classes OF labor are cheaper and
the climate less disturbing. The large vol
ume OF business carried in passenger trains
| involves the running of large number of
trains. which in itself very much lowers the
expense OF the average train.
COST OF EQUIPMENT.
Again the cost OF providing the railway
equipment, which means the capital charges
decreases as the volume Of traffic Increases
and is considerably less per car mile on the
trunk lines than on those In the leaner toy
ritory. Both operating expenses acl fixed
charges enter into cost to the carriers ard
any method OF fixing their pay which, ignores
necessary and unavoidable differences in
cost OF doing the work must be faulty in Ie-
gard to all and unjust to some
For the purpose of fixing the paw for car
rying the mails the country should be divided
| into districts, each district embracing ter
rltory where conditions of transportation are
similar and for each district tariff Of rates
should be set up which has regard to the
conditions ruling therein. Such tariffs should
be for the space of such full cars and com-
partments as the government may occupy
and weights should only be regarded for that
small and diminishing part OF the mails
which are turned over 10 the company's en-
ployes TO be carried as baggage
Finally all tariffs whether for space or for
weights should fairly compensate the car
| rier. They should return him his outlays and
| give him reasonable profit besides
There Is no reason why pay for carrying
the mails should not be governed by the same
| ard cattle. The government claims a power,
which the private shipper lacks OF
/ commanding the performance Of a service and
then saying what shall be paid for doing It.
The companies DO not concede this power,
| but, suppose II existed. would the government
| be any less bound to pay what is reasonable ?
is not the real question between the COM
| panies and the government what would be
1 fair rather than what can be compelled?
| This would be true even IL the existing de-
! hciency in the postal revenues were caused
| by the rates OF pay for the railway service
| But those rates are not the cause of the