The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1900-10-26
POSTAL SERVICE AND PROS
PERITY.
Hon. A. w. Machen, of Washington,
d. c., Told How They are Going
Hand In Hand.

| Inc speech OF hon. A. w. Machen, OF
Washington, superintendent of the free
delivery systems of the post office de-
partment, in the opera house in this city
Saturday evening, proved to be most
interesting talk on the way in which
the prosperity which the country is now
enjoying appealed to the old line,
sound money democrats, not merely
those who voted for Mckinley four
years ago but many others as well who
voted for Bryan then but al now de-
termined to let well enough alone by
voting for the continuance of the ad.
ministration under which the prosperity
has come. The way in which the free
rural delivery which is being rapidly
established in every part of the country
has had hand in bringing this pros
perity more closely home to the farmers
was also dwelt upon at length and in
most interesting way.
Mr.. Machen is naturally well posted
on the condition of the free rural de-
livery system, its possibilities and its
cost and the talk he gave was decidedly
instructive. Incidentally he gave Con-
gressmanJ. w. Fordney, of this con-
gressional district, the compliment of
being one of the most thoroughly alive
of any of the members of the present
congress to the welfare of not only his
constituents but of the farmers of the
whole country as we'll in the carrying
out to a successful finish the organiza-
ton of the free rural delivery system
and the betterment of the postal
system everywhere. When the so-called
watch dogs of the treasury began to
growl over post Office department APP
preparation Congressman Fordney was
always on hand to insist that that great
popular department which does more
for the people than almost any other of
the government departments, should
not be scrimped by any niggardly
policy.
In the early part Of the address Mr..
Machen devoted some time tn an ex-
posture of the falsity of the prophecies of
Mr.. Bryan in the matter especially OF
exports which Mr.. Bryan said would
cease altogether but which last year
alone were greater than for the three
years of '93, o. '95 put together, and
in the matter of the prices of farm
products which Mr.. Bryan had claimed
would fall with the fall of silver but
which have as everyone knows, risen
instead AS an instance of the way in
which prices of farm products have
risen and of the way in which the gen.
eral extension of the free delivery SER
vice is of benefit to the farmer Mr..
Machen told of an interview which he
had with Maryland farmer who had
voted for Mr.. Bryan four years ago but
came to tell him that he should vote for,
Mckinley this year. A short time ago,
he said, when he had his wool to sell, a
buyer came out to his farm and after
looking it over, offered him eighteen
cents a pound for it. The farmer said
that he told the buyer that four years
ago he could have had it at about half
that price and that in fact he had had
hard time after hauling the wool to the
market, to get buyers to take it at even
, that price That was pretty good ad-
vance due to the prosperous times
under which we are now going, but
/ then the farmer added that he had
market report, which had been sent out
from Baltimore that day, in his pocket
and so instead of accepting the offer of
l. ba ,trxht knt. ion
have done, he remarked to him that the
price was very good one but that
they were paying twenty-five and a
half cents in Baltimore, and asked him
how it happened that he could not do
any better The buyer hesitated, then
hemmed and hawed little and finally
said that he guessed that he could pay
that much himself Prosperity had
doubled the price of the wool while the
free delivery system of itself had saved
him half as much more as the price for
which he sold his product four years
ago.
The democrat party was roundlv
scored by the speaker for the way in
which it had refused to take up the mat
ter of free rural delivery even after con-
gress had given q democratic admins
tration an appropriation with which to
begin the experiment of trying the sys-
tenn, while the most severe arraign.
ment of all that Mr.. Bryan received was
for his course in urging the adoption Of
the treaty of Paris and then turning
about and attempting to secure an cleo
ton on the policy of imperialism, bas-
ing his charge of imperialism on the
very thing which he himself helped to
bring about. The contrast which the
speaker made between the old demo
crat Douglass who stood by the country
and administration when once the Mexi-
can war was in progress and the course
of Mr. Bryan in assisting the enemies
of the republic was pictured with scath
ing vividness, which however needed
no more than the words of that sturdy
f., old time democrat, Douglass himself, to
make an arraignment of Bryan all that
could be asked for today.
Before closing Mr.. Machen reminded
his hearers that of all the representa-.
tives in congress who dotted on free
rural delivery, they had man In this
congressional district who was one of
+, the most frequent visitors to the post.
office department. 1 know, said he,
a n Il