Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1902-11-28
CHANGES ARE URGED
Postmaster General Payne's
Radical Recommendations.
BUSINESS HAS GROWN
SUPPORTS THIRD ASSISTANT AS
TO SECOND-CLASS RATES.
Domestic Postage Proposed for Great
Britain, Germay and France-More
Free Delivery Needed.

| Free Delivery Needed.
| The report of Postmaster General Henry
| C. Payne to the President was given out
| for publication today. Its chief recon-
| mendations are: that rural free delivery be
| still further expended; that city delivery be
! widely extended; that the cost Of money or
| ders be reduced; that the recommendations
| of the third assistant postmaster general
| as to postage on seCond-cIass matter be
| adopted that the mailing rates between
| this country and Great Britain, France and
| Germany be reduced to 2 cents an ounce
! for sealed matter; that a system of post
| checks be adopted; that new building be
| constructed for the further accommodation
| of the department.
In the course OF his report Mr.. Payne
| says:
The estimate of the revenues and ex-
penditures of this department for the fiscal
year ending Jure 80, 1904. which has been
| transmitted to the Secretary of the Treas
ury, is given below, together with such
| other items as may be necessary to show
| the basis upon which the calculations are
| made:
Total postal revenue for 1909 1921 .s4s OF
| Add 8 per cent for estimated increase year
! ending June 80 1903. SO 96e 324. Estimated
|
! ton for postal service for 1908. s13S, 41G59S
! Estimated deficit for 1903, s., 600, DOT Esti-
| mated revenue for 1903, si32, S14 81. Add
| 8 per cent for estimated increase year end
! ing June 80, 1904, sl1 ,953 293. Estimated
| revenue for 1904 sl44, I67 G6i. Estimated
| expenditure for. 1904, 1858 0l052O Esti
mated deficit for 1904, SS242, $50.
Business Grows With Service.
This estimate is based upon the ordi-
nary business OF the service, and without
considering the effect of especial measures,
| the results of which are not yet determined.
The increase IN postal revenues not only
attests the wonderful prosperity of the peo-
pie ami the activity of business interests
throughout the country, but also indicates
that the extension Of postal facilities care
fully directed results sooner or later In in
creased receipts and diminished deficits.
With phenomenal growth of population and
other favoring conditions the mail matter
poured into the post offices has rapidly
helped to lessen the percentage of de-
| fceEcies. Despite largely increased eX-
penGitures, the revenues gradually approx
mate the expenses after eacn added outlay
has marked new standard.
Free Delivery an Established Fact.
Rural free delivery service has become
an established fact. 1t is no longer in the
experimental stage, and undoubtedly Con-
gress will continue to increase the appro-
pria ton for this service until all the people
J of the country are reached where it is
! thicily enough settled to warrant 1t. The
| estimates of the department are to the eff
| feet that the available territory for this
| service embraces about 100000 square
! miles, or Cne-third of the country's area
| exclusive of Alaska. The 1850 routes now
| in operation cover about one-third of the
! available territory. From this it will be
! seen that it viii require 81 900 employees adj
! ditional to those now in the service to cover
| this territory. If Congress shall make the
| necessary appropriations, it is believed that
! within the next three years the extension
| of the service will have been completed.
with the carriers salary fixed at 5000
per annum the annual gross cost of the
| completed rural free delivery service will
| approximate $24 900, 900. After the service
has been completed this increase ought not
to exceed annually to 10 per cent or in
about the same proportion obtains IN
other branches Of the service. The people
are demanding the service with impa tient
earnestness and this demand is being Wig
orously supported by their representatives
in Congress.
1.-THE rapid extension of the service will
| Of course, increase the deficits during the
| next three years. After it is completed the
! revenues will quickly feel the effect of its
! establishment, and whatever deficit may be
| occasioned will gradually disappear. The
| experience of the department in counties
| where the service has been fully estab-
! lished for a period of two years justifies the
| belief that the revenues in the rural dis
| tricts will increase fvefold over what they
have under the conditions heretofore pre-
vailing.
More City Delivery.
with the extension of rural free delivery
thus actively progressing complaints arise
in other communities Cities of 1000 pop
ulation, or $4,000 gross postal receipts, re-
| ceive a free delivery service at least twice
| a day, in many cases oftener. Residents
| ~ o. 10 v1-bic he
| service has been extended have a free de-
| livery of mail brought within reach of them
| once a day. Residents of towns of less
| than 10000 population, or $4,000 gross re-
ceipts, have no free delivery at all.
| There is a popular demand, which is
| based on equity and reason. that the space
| rural service should be diminished by ex-
| tending free delivery to towns of not fewer
| than 1000 population, or not less than 50 coo
| gross postal receipts.
Lower Rates for Money Orders.
| The money order business has largely
| Increased during the fiscal year, both In
| the number of orders issued and the amount
| of money involved. The number of do
nestle money orders issued was 4O,474 ,327
amounting to $313,55l,279 The number Of
! international money orders issued during
| the year was 1911 Ill, amounting to s22-
ga I3. The number of International or
| ders paid during the year was 307 $50
| 10 So,o-I, ~. 1t Will De inter-
esting TO note In this connection that the
| amount of the foreign orders issued was
| nearly four times as great as the amount
| paid.
| This business of the department is a
| source of considerable income and il il
| therefore believed that the time has come
| 10 make a slight reduction in the charge
made for the issue OF money order for
! the maximum sum- 500. The fee at pres
| ent for order for 500 is 30 cents and it
| is recommended that legislation be passed
nh EAr ~ i'm don fFfat
fee to % cents.
Need for Postal Checks.
Millions of our people live more or less
remote from any post office, and a very
| large proportion of them are not able to
buy money orders or bank drafts without
| great inconvenience. 1t is not unreason-
able to expect from the government that 1t
| will provide an easy, convenient and safe
| method to transmit small sums, say, So or
| less in amount, without putting the sender
| to the Inconvenience and expense which
| now obtains in the purchase Of draft or