The evening times., 1899-11-10
THE PARCELS POST PLAN
Request of the Manufacturers to
Adopt Englanfs Plan.
Officials Announce That This Cannot
GovcrnmeR Assistant POST
mnxter General Madden Discusses
the Proposition for Cheaper Rates.

The movement recently inausurated by
the National Association OF Manufactur-
ers to secure the passage OF bill through
Congress establishing a parcels post sys-
TEN to be controlled and operated by the
Postoffice Department, was today called
TO the notice of the officials Of this de-
partment and the matter is now receiving
attention.
AT meeting of the executive committee
OF the National Association of Manufae-
turers, which has members all over the
country, a resolution was passed approving
of the English parcels post system, and
urging that it be copied in the United
States. The resolution read as follows:
Resolved, That the executive committee of the
National Association OF Manufacturers favOrs the
enactment Of law tr Congress providing for
the establishment of parcels post system in the
United States similar TO the laws now in force in
England ard Germany. and also the negotiation OF
parcels post treaties with other nations And the
president of the association is hereby authorized
10 take whatever steps in his Judgment may be
necessary to secure the enactment Of such law
and the negotiation OF such treaties.
The system in England has proved a
great convenience to merchants and the
public generally. and has been of great
commercial value. In Germany practically
the same thing is true. The English sys
TEN has been in operation for several
years. and it has been fully demonstrated
that parcels can be carried at a rate of
s cents a pound, increasing at the rate of
2 cents pound up to ten pounds, both
the ten and eleven pound packages being
% cents.
The association which is fostering the
movement contends that the same rate
ought to be established here. The present
rate. 16 cents pound for parcels of mer-
chandise, Is SO high as to be prohibitive,
and in ordinary business transactions can
not be of use.
Third Assistant Postmaster General
Madden, in whose hands the consideration
of the feasibility Of the proposed system
rests, stated to Times reporter today
that he has not yet had time TO fully con-
slider the matter. He had, however, reach
ed the conclusion that the English rate of
s cents could not be inaugurated here. as
the actual cost of transporting a pound
package is cents. The cost might possi-
bly, be reduced from 16 cents, the present
rate. to the actual carrying price, Mr..
Madden thought, but the expense of great
er facilities for handling the greatly in
creased number OF packages might make
it impossible to maintain an Scent rate.
Mr.. Madden doubted If the ordinary run
of parcels resulting from material reduc-
ton in the rate could be handled with the
present pattern Of mail bags. A greater
number of cars would in all probability
have to be run to handle this class Of mat
ter. and street mail boxes of different
type would have to be used. Mr.. Madden
stated that a much longer time would be
required to handle parcels. and that all
these items would have tendency to in-
crease expenses. making it necessary to
raise the Scent rate in order to make
such departure paying venture to the
Government.
The department has not as yet fully in
vestigated the subject and has not been
able to decide either way as to the feast
bility of the protected system. 7'~' q.
A reduced rate on parcels would without
doubt greatly expedite the delivery of
small packages. Many merchants dealing
n sn1ll articles would abolish th:ir pres
ent wagon delivery system, and depend
solely upcpr the post, and merchants send
ing goods to custome's out of town would
have great advantage.
The express companies. whose business
would be seriously affected. II is said, are
likely to make strong fight against such
a departure. The present rate acts as a
discrimination in their favor, and they
will object vigorously to its removal.
John Wanamaker. who studied the
question when he was Postmaster General.
stated in his report for 1891 that there
were only four strong objections to par
GELS post, and they are the four great ex-
press companies. which would. he says, be
Just as well on with an eight or eleven
pound parcels post II the heavy freight of
the executive department and the immense
packages of bogus serial books that are
now thrown upon the mails were shut out
and turned over to the express companies
where they belong.
The National Association Of Manufactu-
rers will have q bill prepared for intro
duction at the coming session of Congress
urging reduction in the rate for fourth
CLASS matter to more nearly conform to the
rate OF the English parcels post.
0GsW,s Pure
MAh MkHhSek0u