Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1902-05-17

Witnessed a radical change.
About two years ago the post office
department, with Charles Emory
Smith still postmaster general, and the
present incumbent, Edwin &. Madden,
third assistant, with considerable
demonstration, which has been kept up
to the present time, announced it's in
tention of making radical changes in
the relation Of the publishers to the
postal service. The manner in which
they proposed to accomplish their de-
sire was nothing more nor less than
uuietly assuming to perform I'LL Of the
functions Of Congress. the supreme
court and the whole government COM
bin"d, "nd quietly asking the publish
ers concerned what they We're going to
20 about it.
To give their actions some pretenSe Of
excuse they began to talk about
buses" of the postal system, or "legiti-
mate" and 'illegitimate" publications,
Of a subsidy" granted by the govern
ment to publishers of newspapers anu
periodicals, and began to talk in an
oracular manner about the spirit of
the law" Just how privileges which
have been enjoyed under the law for
20 years with the knowledge and per
mission of all branches of The govern
Inent could now be called abuses by
an executive officer or how such an
officer could now declare certain pub
iirations 'illegitimate" which for
twenty years previous had been "lcgiti
mate" without any change in the law,
or why Il rate of postage es-
tablished by Congress 10 encour-
age general enlightenment and to
facilitate trade relations SHOULD now be
called Il subsidy" unless all this was
done for The purpose of instilling into
the minds Of the people erroneous ideas
Of the situation through the use of sin
lister terms, we have never been able
to understand. But worse than this,
the manner in which The postoffice de-
partment inNOkeS the aid of that in
tangible something, the spirit Of the
law is quite novel and startling to
Il lawyer. The spirit Of the law has
4 fairly Well-defined meaning as used
sometimes by the courts, but we have
never known of Il law before so unfOr-
tunate rs to have existed over 20 years,
with a Well-dctined ana fixed interpre
tation during the whole time only to
have its spirit discovered by some third
assistant executive officer and found to
he exactly the opposite Of the law itself.
As we have had occasion to say be-
fore, we do not see how the body Of the
law and the spirit of the law" can be
distinct and antagOnistic unless the
law is dead. We rather suspect that
this is the unfortunate condition of the
present postal law so far as the pres
cnt third assistant postmaster general
is concerned with enforcing it. This use
Of sinister and misleading phrases and
frequent denunciation which has ema-
mated from the post office department
and has been spread by Washington
correspondents throughout the press of
he United States. has in great meas
ure lnisled the people as to the actual
legal conditions. | have taken occa-
SION. whenever ] have spoken upon this
subject to a body of editors and pub
| fishers like yourselves, to disclain any
attempt to point out to them what pro
| visions would be best for them if en-
bodied in the law. 1t may be possible
| that the law would be improved by
| cha nging it 50 IS to accomplish all that
the post office department is now en-
JeaVoring to accomplish in defiance OF
| the law. This. however. we will say,
| and We assert it the more emphatically
because We believe we are expressing
your convictions in the matter, that an
utter disregard of the law as passed by
| Congress and an attempt on the part
| Of IN executive officer to usurp the
| functions Of the LEGISLATURE and the
courts. is revolutionary and anarchistic
land should not be countenanced or
tolerated.
| The third assistant postmaster gen
| cral, MT Madden, has throughout this
crusade announced the answering in
tention of the post office department to
drive ont of existence so-called mail
order papers. Many of the changes in
postal regulations recently made Mr..
| Madden has announced as being neces-
sary to carry out his fondly cherished
ambition. Whether it was necessary
ID revolutioniZe all Of the regulations Of
the most office department, thereby de
priving unohiectionable publications Of
their Just privileges: whether 1t was
necessary or in good taste to make all
Of this display over the mere expulsion
of 4 score of papers, and whether or
not these Objectionable publications
now. after n year of promised eXecu-
ton. have actually lost their heads, We
wish to consider later. With somewhat
! definite instances and conditions now
in mind to which you may make an ap-
plication of the law, we viii consider
the text and past Interpretations of the
existing postal law
Although the postal law may not be
well understood. yet the law is conf
paratively brief so far MS it relates TO
second class mail. If it were profitable
to quote the whole law on this subject,
il would take but little time or space.
The postal law of 1879 divides mailable
matter into four classes. First. writ
ten matter, Second, periodical publi-
cations. Third, miscellaneous printed
matter Fourth, merchandise II
provides that,
"Mailable matter of the second class
shall embrace all newspapers and other
. periodical publications which are issued
az stated intervals ana as frequently as
, four times n year and are within the
|, conditions named in Sections Il and
Ia" Section II referred to provides
for examination of mailable matter
and higher rate of postage. IL such
, matter Is found subject TO a higher
rate Section II referred to names the
conditions upon which a publication
, ebal no a admitted IN tho caaond-claSc