Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1901-11-08
EFFECTS OF CHEAP PARCELS POST.

OUT tnlnk an onion is' a good remedy
| for weak Observation-Disclosures Press.
| EFFECTS OF CHEAP PARCELS POST.
| [Chicago Dry Goods Reporter.l
The Reporter has shown in past is
sues how a cheap parcels post would
| injure the country merchants of the
| United States. The retailers realize
pretty thoroughly what it would mean
| to them, and their influence will be
thrown strongly against parcels post
bill in the next congress. To make such
opposition effective, however, it must
come from the consumers as we'll as
| from the merchants. The citizens and
! taxpayers Of every town and village
must be convinced that cheap parcels
| post service would injure them person
ally-that 1t would depreciate their
| property and be money out of pocket
| for them. Unless the majority of the
people can be convinced of the injuri-
Gus nature af the parcels post, and I'M
| less they can in turn convince congress.
a bill of that kind is more than likely
to pass. To avoid such a catastrophe
every merchant should call the atten-
ton of the local editors of his city or
Village to the following facts and should
try to have these arguments presented
as fully as possible to the general pub
\ lie thru the newspapers:
| At first glance the cheap parcels post
scheme looks like a good thing for the
lccnsamer in the country. 1t seems like
desirable thing to be able to order
| goods from retail order house in New
York or Chicago and have the goods de-
| livered for a few cents regardless of
distance. 1t would give the catalog
| houses and department stores in the
mill centers chance to absorb the pat
I ronage of consumers all over the coun-
try, since it would cost no more to mail
bolt of calico or pair of shoes across
! the continent than to mail it to the
nearest village. So long as these hous-
es must pay express on most of their
| goods, their territory is limited and the
rural consumer can buy as cheaply of
! his local dealer as he can from the cata-
log house. The cheap parcels post
scheme proposes TO make the govern
ment go into the express and freight
business on letter postage basis. The
/ consumer can see that this would IN
| jure the local merchant, but he is in
| clined to think it might be good thing
| for himself He would be able to get
things little cheaper than the local
dealer could sell them after paying
/ freight. Then why should the consumer
oppose the cheap parcels post? Because
lit would make him lose far more than
The would gain. Because the injury to
local business interests would be out of
all proportion to the little the consumer
would save.
Suppose, for instance. that the whole
mercantile trade in Iowa could be con-
centrated suddenly in a few big Chica-
go establishments. The merchants IN
all the towns of the state would have to
go out of business. There woalld be an
Immediate and sweeping shrinkage of
real estate values in the business center
of every town. and the depreciation
would extend to the residence districts
and to the surrounding farms. Thou
sands of clerks and other employees
would be thrown out of work, and this
would reduce the consuming powers OF
I the community, which in turn would
affect the manufacturing. farming and
railway interests of the state. The net
result would be an enormous logs to
brought about for the sake of getting
goods few cents cheaper from dis
'tant metropolis. The only gamer would
be the big city dealer. The manufactur-
err the jobber, the railway, the retailer,
and the consumer all would lose more
than they would gain.
There would be an enormous deficit
for the government to make up every
year, because it would be carrying mer-
chandise at loss. This would come
out of the taxpayers pocket. The con-
sumer would pay the freight" in the
form of extra taxes. Goods can not be
carried from one place to another be-
low certain rate without loss to the
carrier. 1t is reasona BILE to believe that
our present express and freight charges
are pretty close to the safe minimum.
The actual cost of transportation must
be paid by the consumer, and If he does
not pay it in the original price OF his
goods he must pay 1t In the form OF
tax. Which is better. to keep the local
merchants in business by paying them
fair prices, or to drive them out of bus
mess by dealing with firm in a distant
city ard paying the difference In the
shape of q tax to make up a postal de-
felt? In both cases the consumer pays
the freight charges and gets his goods
for about the same total outlay, yet in
the one case he has destroyed the local
realty values and killed all business ac-
tivity in his community, while in the
other he has kept his money at home
and preserved local values and enter
prises. Which pays the consumer best
in the long run? That Is the parcels
post question in a nutshell. 1t should
not take long for every taxpayer and
citizen to decide that the parcels post
scheme is unbusinesslike and ruinous to
his own best interests.
Imparts fascination to all womankind;
makes the form conform more clearly