The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1899-04-05
The Rural Mail Delivery.

The Atlanta Constitution, one of
the most progressive and widely cir
cuiated papers in the United States,
has the following strong article on
Representative Stokes work:
v are glad TO observe that the
matter of rural delivery has been
taken up very actively by Congress
man Stokes, of South Carolina, who
has introduced a measure in the
house 10 extend free delivery of mail
along the star routes. Under the
provisions of the Stokes bill, any
person desiring his mail deposited
along tie line Of any star route shall
erect box as convenient to the
roadside as practicable and file with
the nearest postmaster on each side
Of the box request in writing for
delivery of his mail to the proper
carrier for deposit in the mail box
The boxes along the star routes
are to be numbered consecutively
beginning from the initial point of the
star route. With the view of ulti
mately bringing the mail thus depos
tied under the protection of the gen
eral postal laws until received by the
person to whom it is sent, or by his
agent, the postmaster general is
authorized to invite submission of
plans and devices for special boxes
and duplicate keys for the use OF the
carriers and addresses, respectively
The Stokes bill provides that all
contracts for carrying mail on star
routes made after the passage of the
act, shall include the deposit in the
proper boxes placed along the line of
the routes for this purpose without
charge to the addresses, any nail
matter that may be entrusted to the
carriers for such distribution by any
postmaster on the route and it is
made the duties of the carriers to take
up such mali matter as they may find
in the mail boxes, and deposit the
same for mailing at the next post
Office on their route
The bill also makes it the duty Of
each postmater, on receipt of a writ
ten order from any person living on
or pea an established star route, to
deliver to the proper carrier for that
route any mail matter, with lnstruc
tions as to the proper mail box IN
which tbs matter is to be deposited.
Such is tae measure, at once brief
and simple, by means of which it is
intended to establish free rural de
livery The Constitution hopes the
bill will pass If our readers in the
agricultural districts will write to
their representatives in congress and
urge ehem to support the measure
there will be small difficulty in urging
its passage
1t is our boast that under our laws
all citizens are equal. You will hear
orators declaimipg of equality under
the law, and yet while people in the
county have to travel miles to the
nearest post Office to get their mail,
the postal authorities are engaged in
erecting a costly Pneumatic system In
the city of New York in order to
save fifteen or twenty minutes in the
delivery of mai! 1t is true that a
community in the nature CT things
will enjoy larger and more complete
postal facilities than a remote and
scattered settlement, but We are
speaking nov. of equality under the
law and the rights Of individuals.
But this difference is most clearly
recognized in the demand for free
rural delivery. The people are not
asking for pneumatic tubes nor for
any device that will place additional
burdens on the taxpayers. The
Stokes bill simply calls for system
of cheap boxes to be affixed to trees
or posts along the post roads covered
by the star route system
These carriers have to go along
these routes anyhow, and it will
hardly be any trouble for them to
deposit mail and take up that which
they find. When the bill becomes a
law star route bidders will be put on
notice by it's terms Of this addition to
their duties as contractors, and they
will take care of themselves in the
matter of compensation.
The history of every increase of
mail facilities in this country since it's
establishment shows that their in
creased cosl is invariably offset BY in
creased revenue This is the history
of the reduction of letter postage
from 3 to 2 cents. 1t wss freely pre-
dicted that it would result in an enor
nous deficit; the result, however,
was an increase of revenue When
free city delivery was established the
oonoo nrodiction WAS made but the