Iron County register., 1899-11-09
FOR RURAL FREE DELIVERY.
The First Assistant Postmaster GEN.
erai Makes = Strong Plea with
Convincing Arguments.

washington, Nov. v.6.-A vigorous plea
1or rural free delivery is made in the
annual report of First Assistant Post
master-General Heath, made public las.
night.
Mr.. Heath said the service so far had
resulted In increased postal receipts,
ennaneement of the value of farm
lands reached by rural free delivery
OF from So to So per acre; a general
Improvement of the condition of the
roads traversed by the rural carrier:
better prices for farm products; the
producers being brought into daily
touch with the state of the markets.
besides educational benefits conferred
py removing the monotony of farm life
through ready access to wholesome
literature and knowledge of current
events.
On November 1, rural free delivery
was In operation over 3s3 services. rad
Iaung over 40 states and one territory,
Idaho. Wyoming, Mississippi and Mon.
tana being the only states unrepresent-
ed.
Between the beginning of the new
nscal year, July 1, 1899, and November
1, by an additional expenditure OF
Sl5O,O00, rural free delivery has been
extended to nearly 10000 persons at
an annual cost of about "a cents per
capita, against an average per capita
cost of $3.50 in small towns of 5000
population.
1T is a small matter to a resident OF
town." says the report, "to be saved
a f0xr Al
post office, while on the contrary, it is
a great accommodation to the farmer
to be spared a drive of five or ten
miles over country roads to get his
mail. In recent public discussion ad.
vocates of the system, who took the
value of the time thus lost in the busy
farming season at only so cents per
hour, found that their figures ran up
into many millions of dollars lost to
the agricultural interests through be-
ing obliged to send to the village for
the mails.
Rural carriers are shortly to be au-
thorlZed to receive and receipt for let
tiers for registration as city carriers
do now.
The report recommends the adoption
the rural service with two compart-
ments, one for delivery and one for
collections with one master key for the
carrier to open the collection compart-
ments of all the boxes and a key for
the delivery compartment to be fur
nished to each patron of the delivery.
These boxes are to be put up and kept
in regular repair by the post Office de-
partment for rental at moderate prices,
which would not only pay the govern
ment interest on its investment, but
yield revenue.
The rural mail boxes would thus
have thrown around them the undis-
puted protection of the United States
laws.
By illustration, it is shown that the
rural service at Westchester, Pa, not
only paid for itself, but left in the nine
uonths of its operation up to Septem-
ber 80, a balance of $50 after delivering
55,s05 pieces of mail matter at the
the doors of the farmers. The reports
of hostility of post masters and from
star route contractors are dismissed as
having no substantial grounds and rs
animated by no desire for the public
good.
A modification of the postal laws is
recommended to permit star route
messengers under special appointment
and oaths to perform rural free deliv-