The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1902-09-18
Parcels Post Service.

British government has gone into opera
ton with this country, the British post
offices receiving parcels for the United
States, which are delivered by the Amer
lean Express company to tho consignees
in this country. With this service our
government has nothing to do. as the at
tempts, of Great Britain to effect, an in
ternational, arrangement have heretofore
failed. The Cunard and White Star lines
are delivering the parcels the charges be-
ing "a cents for each three-pound package
and y cents. for packages weighing from
seven to eleven pounds, to the principal
points in our country, with an additional
charge of ID cents for a British clearance
fee and our customs fees are added to the
dutiable matter. Packages are limited to
maximum weight of eleven pounds and
and girth combined. p. '-.: y, t.> =
The parcels post convention with Ger
many which went into operation last year
showed in one year a preponderance of
business from Germany, the aggregate
weight of parcels received from Germany
,4s4 pounds sent from this country to
Germany, the average weight of the for
mer being 7.44 pounds, and of the latter
2.44 pounds The record shows that to ell
the other countries with which we have
parcels post conventions, we only sent
49, 600 pounds. The other countries are
jamaica Turks Island; Barbados, the
Bahamas, British Honduras and Guiana,
Mexico, Leeward and Windward Islands,
Danish West Indies, Colombia, Costa Rico,
Salvador, Newfoundland, Honduras, New
Zealand and Nicaragua. = ~
The postmaster general is inclined to
think that before a foreign service of this
kind is extended, congress- should see that
a domestic parcels post system is estab-
lished in connection with4the postal :serV-
ice. Of couse, if a domestic system is es-
tablished by our government and; the for
eign service in merchandise packages is
extended to other countries in Europe be-
sides Germany, the. express companies
would no doubt lose a considerable
amount Of this business. ,.;. IL
The British government has gone. into
the parcels post business, because" it will
be profitable as an Independent operation
and 1T is said arrangements will be made
for a similar service from the United
States to Great Britain. -
The government will no doubt discover
that the extension of the parcels post
| system in Europe will make a very APP
| io1> IN bo
| 1t has succeeded only recently in greatly
| minimizing the postal deficiency by the
| proper classification Of mail matter, by
which various publications which had
been mailed at a rate of cent a pound
and cost the government cents pound
to handle were transferred from second
to third class, where it has to pay at the
rate Of one cent for each two ounces, the
| depar tment ruling that in third class such
matter belongs. In 1901 the second class
| matter aggregated about go per cent Of
the entire mail weight Of the country anc
yet it paid only $4,294, 445 of the Sill, 631,
1873 revenue Of the last fiscal year, or, te
i put it in another way, three-fifths of the
mail weight provided about one twenty.
eighth part Of the revenue No doubt the
postal revenues would wipe out the an.
nual deficit if a well-regulated parcels pos
were put in operation in this country ant
similar facilities were arranged with Eu
ropean countries which desire such con
ventions with US. All progressive coun
tries have adopted the facilities for the
transmission of parcels at moderate cost
except ours. .... ,Eg, .,.....s.- 3 ... .Esaa