The copper country evening news. [volume] (Calumet, Mich.) 18??-1907, 1898-01-11
THE POSTAL REVENUES
The Annual Deficit Has Grown
to SI3,ooo,oco.
THE DEMAND FOE PETRENCHMENT.


Chairman Loud Attributes the Deficit to
tn. so Called Libraries" Mailed at Sec
ond Glass Ratcs-The Cali For Cheaper
Letter Postage.
WAsilNGToN. Jan III Special. One
Of the most important subjects before con
gress is that OF stopping the annual deficit
in the revenues OF the postoifice depart.
ment The deficit has now grown to Sl3,
900, COO year. Chairman Loud of the
postoffice committee of the house makes
the startling statement that If the postal
business of the country were turned over
to private corporation it would be man
aged at a profit Of from $50, 600, 900 TO
$40, 600, 900 year instead Of loss of Sl3,
900, 000 At the same time no one pro
poses TO turn the postoflce over to a pri
yate corporation. Ii is safe to say that If
such a proposition were brought forward
in congress it could not command a dozen
votes in the two houses.
Cause of the Deficit.
But where does the postoffice department
| fall behind Sl3, 200, 900 year in its in
come account? Certainly not through car
rying letters and postal cards and other
| first class mail matter, because this matter
earns 32 cents a pound, while the average
| cost of handling all mail matter is only
| cents pound nor from carrying third
| class matter, such as books, pamphlets
| and circulars, which pays cents "A pound,
| or just about the cost of handling; nor
| yet from fourth class matter such as pat
| terms, samples and small articles Of ner
chandise, for this pays rs cents "a pound,
or double the cost of transmission.
| But il is different with second class mat
| ter, according TO the postoffce committee.
| 1t says that So per cent of all the weight
| carried in this class is composed of books
and pamphlets which should be mailed as
third class matter, but by pretending to
| issue their books as periodicals that
| is, weekly, monthly, seniironthly or quar-
| terly-the publishers claim the right to
mail their stuff in quantities ranging from
an ounce to a ships cargo at the second
class rate of cent pound.
Second Class Matter.
Chairman Loud ascertains from the fig
| ures of the postoffice department that last
| year the mails carried $40, SOS, l55 pounds
| of second class matter, mailed in bulk,
this constituting So per cent of all second
class matter. The remaining 10 per cent
was made up of matter mailed free in the
county of publication. Let us see how the
government fares in the business of carry
| ing this enormous quantity of freight,
amounting to los, 900 tons, or 1900 tons
for each business day of the year:
Cost of handling, 8 cents pound. s24, So, C52
Postage paid, cent a pound. 3,l0i,5sl
Loss to the government. ............. s2l,7i6,Osl
In this connection Chairman Loud gives
some interesting facts concerning Uncle
Sans great postal business. Last year the
ttotal expenditures were S94, 600, 900.
| Transportation of mails costs sac, 600, 600
a year, leaving SD, 900, 900 for postmas-
tiers, clerks, carriers, railway mail men
and all other cost of handling. The money
order and registry business are estimated
| to cost 81, GOO, 900 year, and this leaves
in round numbers $780, 0G0. 900 year as
the cost Of handling tho mails. Now, as
| second class matter takes up about two
thirds of all the weight and one-tbird the
number of pieces of all the mail carried,
! it is considered fair to charge to 1t two
| thirds the cost of transportation, which
! would be $50, 500, 900, and one-third the
cost of handling, which would be sic, 500,
| 600, or a total expense cntailed by second
class matter of S43. 000 900 year. AS the
postage received on second class matter is
only about SO, 600, 900 year, il Is figured
that the total loss Oh carrying 1t is $40,
| 900, 900 year. And IL is on this showing
| that Chairman Loud makes his statement
that private corporation could carry On
the postal business at n profit of sac, GOO,
| 600 year
| Chairman LIQUIDS Bill.
1t is not proposed to increase the rates
| OH all kinds of second class matter. Tie
bill now pending i'm the house provides
| that newspapers, magazines and all legiti-
| mate periodicals shall be allowed to enjoy
| all the privileges which they now possess.
| The reform Is aimed at the misuse of the
mails by publishers who dump in their
books and SO called libraries" at rate of
postage which pays only one-eighth the
cost Of handling Mr.. Loud asks if the
| government is going to carry this kind of
freight at one Eighth the cost, why does IL
not carry wheat and corn and cotton and
clothing and groceries and machinery at
| the same ruinous rate.
| There is i'm the country great demand
| for reduction Of letter postage to cent
4
| this fraudulent second class matter was
compelled to pay proper rate of postage
the letter rate could be reduced OF course
it is not thought possible to save all of the
| $40, 900, 600 a year which the government
now loses i'm this way, but IL is believed
that by enacting the law proposed by the
| postofficc committee SIC, 600, 900 to SIS,
| 900, 900 a year may be saved.
Reform Long Demanded.
1t is a curious thing that the agitation
| for this reform has been going on for ten
| years and nothing has been accomplished
| The house has twice passed bills looking
| to correction of the evil but they have not
become laws. The newspaper and maya
zine publishers of the country, almost
| without exception. favor the reform. Most
| Of the so called libraries are reprints OF
| foreign books. Out Of 1850 volumes in
one "library" only IS were found by Mr..
| Spofford Of the library Of congress to he
| Of American origin. OF 600 In another
series only 20 were American. The claim
| is made, therefore, that il the government
| goes on carrying these publications at less