Las Vegas daily optic. [volume] (Las Vegas, N.M.) 1880-1908, 1898-01-06
ann rnAun on THE ACES.

M
The Albuquerque Citizen takes up
the question OF the deficit In the posta'
department Of the government, wbicl
averages about So. 600. 900 annually
This means that besides paying tw'
cents per ounce on sealed matter, on
cent per ounce on merchandise, ons
half cent per ounce on printed matter
and one-fourth cent per q on pa.
pers and magazines, with a M cen
per D ,und rate to publishers, the
American people are paying 10 federal
iaxes So, 600 600 annually to carry on
their post, flee system.
Naturally the question Is asked why
this annualdeicit occurs. The Citizen
replies that 1t is caused by the exces.
sive price paid for railway mail service.
10 support Of this contention it says;
at tho present time the hauling Of the
mails costs an average Of eight cents q
pound, while express packages are pront-
ably carried over the same routes and At
the same speed aud distance at one cent
per pound, II appears from recent sta.is-
tics that the Pennsy lvania railroad In 1896
was allowed SAC, 900 for transporting thirty
tons Of mail per d-y from Pittsburg to
Chicago, 40 average OF $40 per ton, or nine
cents per ton per mile. This was not earned
by fast mail service, the average speed Of
Il aims beiog twenty six miles per hour, .
rate which has been equalled by the speed
Of fast freight. The same compensation
goes to the Vanderbilt lines. Both com-
panies, however, carry fast freight at BIC
Of a cent per mile per ton.
That the government should De
charged eight or nine cents per ton
per mile for carrying mails, while the
express companies are charged bu'
three-tenths OF a GENT per mile for .
similar service simply shows that thu
postal system is rotten to the core
| This has been the case for years,
whether republicans or democrats
were in control Of the government.
| Why should the people submit to this
wholesale robbery any longerf Il il
the most rotten part Of Dur national
| ADMINISTRATION.
But the wholesale frauds do moi
stop here. 1t is claimed that during
the weighing season, which takes pl zee
yearly, and on which contracts are let,
the mails are padded by means o.
which the railway companies secure
from 81 600. 100 to S., 0O0, 600 a year
more than they are ltgitlmatly entitled
to receive.
Another great swindle is the rent o
mail cars, which the government
should own. A judge Of the supreme
court Of North Carolina, recently
showed that the cost of these cars i,
from 90, 500 to 81 900 for construction
and their average life isatwenty years
There are about 500 Of these in use
aud the annual rent is about 200 pei
cent. OF the cost OF construction
Even Mr.. Loud wants to appropriate
SO. eco. 900 u year for the rent Of thes'
cars. At this rate, the government
will pay, in twenty years, So, 900, 900
for the use OF the cars which they
could build for so 900. 900.
Was there ever such another out
rage on any peoplef Yet the Ameri
can people have stood it for years
Then, too, the question has beer
brought Up in congress time and agaIn,
vet a vote upon it has never beer
secured. The national Legislators are
afraid to put themselves on record
against this gigantic railroad steal
What a commentary upon free govern.
ment!