The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1898-02-04
REID AND M%ILHOLLAND.
,rT,TIoNs AND FlEsEHooDs TO
AIRPORT BEGGING DEMANDS.

ntn AnYtuluk w. Wow ~
Tr,bupo and the Tubular Dispatch Conn
,,,,-That IL. Anything bnt the truth
u.r.,. the T~ruth-Chier Industry 40 Far
shawn By OnlciaI Reports the Issuing or
s,.cL and Bonds-Oniy Ono Line or Tubes
operatins and That lees Than . Vile BsnE
other. Declared About to Ne Completed
n, a week Nowhere Near Completion
and city Won't give ANY more Permits.
n..perate for an appropriation from tho Gov
,-rm.nt. the Tubular Dispatch Company. tho
k,,et hackers OF which are John e. Milholland
and his organ, the Tribune. has tackled tho
,o.,al committees of Congress with petitions
,,rrod By a hundred or 80 citizens Of
rore or less rcpute. THE SUN made public
nore than a week ago some Of the details Of
thc proposed raid by this company on tho Gov
,,nment. II drew blood, and the backors OF the
.ompany have been squealing ever since. But
,hn Appropriation bill Is before the committees
a, Congress, and the backers Of the company,
,,alizing that II an appropriation is to be OBJ
t.jned this year things must be done quickly,
h.ve risked further publicity and resorted to
N, ne,Ition plan in the hope that 1t may have
some effect.
The Tribune on Tuesday printed more than
n page Of petitions illustrated with maps.
From a news point Of view, the whole thing was
Interesting only In this: the petitions were so
drawn and the matter was handled by the Trib-
rns in such a manner as to deceive Congress
and the people as to the Importance Of the COM
many and what It has done already. The Tribune
headed its article ITO extend the pneumatic
mail service In the territory Of Greater New
York. Noteworthy petitions from worthy citi-
pens to the postal committees Of Congress, ask.
ipr for improved facilities on both sides of the
East River" Hero Is the petition In full, so far
nsit relates to Manhattan Island:
NEW York, Jan. 81, 1898.
Hon.. o. Woicoff, Chairman Postal Committee,
Chairman Postal Commute, House Of Rspressn:
DEAR siRs: Permit US to address the Postal
committees of Congress through you with re.
gard to an extension of the pneumatic mail ser
There Is now in operation in this city a cir
cui: between the main Post Office in the
borough OF Manhattan and the Produce EN-
change. The success OF this circuit has been
Immediate and certain. The two additional
Ing that Post Office with tho Brooklyn main
Post Office and the Grand Central Station re.
Bpectively will accelerate incoming mails and
postpone closing OF outgoing mails at the
offices reached by from one to two hours. Tho
value of such a result to the business Of this
great commercial centre Is Obvious.
II like pneumatic connection could be had
with the principal sub-stations throughout the
city, the results would. OF course. be multiplied.
In addition. however, such u system might give
agreat increase OF value to our local mail ser
vice. As matters now stand 1t takes many
hours for a letter to 20 from one part of the
city to another, even under the most favorable
conditions. The local telegraph service Is SO
slow as to be idi !. naG To- Our mss most riS e. hd
the District Telegraph messenger. who has be-
come proverbial.
principal postal stations throughout the city,
supplemented by special delivery clerks ut the
various sub-stations reached. the Post Office
department could doubtless entirely supersede
both the local telegraph and the local messenger
service. confer a great boon on this great com.
munity. and at the same time exploit for itself
asourcc Of large revenue 10 the department.
The pneumatic tube service. with its great
carrying power. is above all adapted to the cir
cumstances Of a dense population. around cen
tres not far distant from each other. calling for
frequent deliveries. No city, in the world is bet
conhguration. by amount Of business offered. BY
population. 1t Is easily over All
other American cities; We ask the prompt in.
creased with such profit to the department and
to 50 great a population.
least provision for 2 line from the main Post
Office up the west side Of Manhattan Island az
1 S..A 4. i G.:s.! r. str 6. W. Th 49, s MSp j. w TSa S'ero ssssaSns
connections at Forty third and l25th streets to
stations H and L, and for q line from the Brook
stations B. D, and Z.
The map accompanying this petition 10 even
more calculated to deceive han the petition
itself. 1t stretched all the way across the page
Of the Tribune, and underneath 1t was the cap
tion, completed and Projected Lines in the
Borough Of Manhattan" This map had on 1t
about four feet and . half Of dark lines repro
senting the completed" and projected lines.
Tho fact Is that just ono inch and q quarter of
the four feet and a half represented completed
lines. The company had completed q limo from
Station p in the Produce Exchange to the
General Post Office. and on tho map
that distance is one and one quarter inches.
The map is Of more or less interest to New
York people. however, for tho reason that
It shows that II successful in getting its appro-
pridtion. the company proposes to dig up streets
In every direction. Some Of the streets to be
dug up are: Park row. from Division street to
the Post Office; the Bowery, its entire length;
Centre, Broome. Mulberry. Fourth avenue, to
the Grand Central Station; Third avenue, its
entire length below the Harlem; Twenty-ninth,
Twenty-third, Park place, West Broadway,
South Fifth avenue. Washington SQUARE South
anu West; Sixth avenue, its entire length to
Fhty.hrst street; Greenwich avenue. Bank,
Thirteenth, Fifty-frst. Columbus avenue. 10th,
Central Park West, and 125th.
In addition to the statements made in tho pc
ttion, the Tribune makes certain other state
mchts. 1t says The circuit between the Post
Office and the Produce Exchange. In this city.
was opened last October, and since then 90 per
cent. of the mail between these points has been
sent by tube, to the entire satisfaction of the
Post ofice authorities and the people," The
facts about this matter, as obtained by The
Dun from the Post Office officials themselves,
are these: Since Oct. 10 last the tubes have been
IN operation between the two points daily be-
tween the hours of 8 o'clock in the morning
and o o'clock In the afternoon. Between
these hours the small mail. that is, the
ietters and postal cards, has been sent
through the tubes. None OF the mail of other
classes haS ooen sent through because the tubes
could not handle it any more than they could
handle the mail between the General Post or
nee and the Grand Central Station. That por-
ZION OF the mail between these two points that
was posted in the Post Office or the branch Of
nee between the hours of 8 o'clock In the after.
noon and 3 O'Clock in the morning, that 10, six
Teen hours out of twenty-four. THE SUN is in
formed by the Superintendent of Mails, has not
oeeh sent through the tubes. but has all been
nAhdled-as it was handled before there were
MI h -I-.