The Wichita daily eagle. [volume] (Wichita, Kan.) 1890-1906, 1899-08-20
AUTOS FOR UNCLE SAM
To be Used In Cities fSF the CvlIeetiou
Of Matt n after.

OF Mali Matter.
Washington, Aug. 1S-Notfce has beer
made by the press once or twice lately
OF the proposed uae. of automobile vehi.
ces for the collection of mail matter ir
Washington Much interest Is taken al
the postoffice department In this expert.
ment, because, although IN one sense II
Is local matter, yet The babit has grown
strong OF using this city rs sort of ex.
pertinent station fo- all kinds. OF postal as
well as municipal improvements. trial
has already been given te automobile col
lection here, which, though 1t has not set
tied the question Of it's permanent adop-
ton, has gone a good way toward that
end by proving that, even with a vehicle
not fitted up in any respect for postal pur-
poses, the work can be done with twice
the speed of the old collection by horss
and wagon.
The practice Of the Washington post
Office in the past has been to let the COL
lectors by wagon supply their own outfit,
taking in return therefor an allowance of
s25 a month. Each man gets his regular
pay as carrier, and then is allowed to
make what he can out of this extra COM
pensation. The result has been the
launching pretty forlorn-looking set OF
turnouts. the horses having been picket
up apparently at auction. and the wagons
being anything but creditable as speci-
mems of the governments taste in the
machinery of transportation. There have
been accidents. also. which only by a
stroke OF good fortune have escaped be-
ing very embarrassing. The other day,
in thunderstorm, a particularly loud
crash frightened a mail-collectors horse
while the mn was getting the letters out
of a post-box. and It broke away and
dashed down the street, smashing the wa
gon and scattering the collected mail all
over the highway. The automobile has
by no means yet proved its immunity
from accidents, but the chances of such
ably be greatly reduced by its USE
Another consideration f. the probabi,i-
ty Of economy in actual dellars and cents.
1t appears that. bought .sins1y. q vehicle
Of the size and kind. adapsed to postal
purposes would cost about $780, whereas,
built and sold in large quantities under
contract, the same thing could be got for
half or two-thirds the present price. II
the present system of allowances to car
riers were continued, therefore, carrier
who could raise the money for his first
outlay, even at 81 200, would be earning
25 per cent. on his investment. which
good many persons outside OF the postal
service would consider a handsome profit.
He would have no feed to buy. and no vet
Urinary bills to pay. and no horse to die
on his hands. He would have some ex-
penses possibly for repairs. but these
would be incidental to the use of any wa
gon. and the oily additional cost would be
the fuel for keeping the motar going. If
the postal automobile should come into
general use, the carrier would make an
increased profit according to the decrease
of the vehicle In price.
But even IL the government were itself
to purchase and maintain the automobiles.
or rent them from manufacturers or con-
tractors, abolishing the present allowance
system, 1t is obvious that II could do its
work cheaper than now. unless some dis
advantages are developed by further ex-
pertinent. All through the country pay
masters are eager to learn the results Of
experience. in case Ct Is
concluded to make the trial on any con-
siderable scale