Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1903-07-11
OUT OF POLITICS.
The Presidents Alleged Purpose With
Regard to Free Delivery

The Presidents Alleged Purpose With
Regard to Free Delivery
The entire ;ruSal free delivery SER
vice is to be taken out of politics, says
Washington dispatch. It will not
hereafter form any part Of Federal pa
tronage. The suggestions of senators
and representatives will carry no more
weight than those Of ordinary citizens.
Fourth Assistant Postmaster Cen
eral Bristow, with the full approval Of
Mr.. Payne, with the fiscal year begin
ming today, has completely revolution
lied the rural free delivery system.
Congressional districts have been elm
mated as factors in ESTABLISHING new
routes. States will hereafter form the
unit on which the system is based.
The most rigid rules will be applied
to the selection Of new routes. The
requisite petition containing 100 sigma
lures Of each twenty miles covered
will be necessary. Inspectors will then
ascertain whether these signatures are
genuine and to what extent the per-
sons represented utilize the postal SER
vice, whether they send and receive
many letters, whether they purchase
stamps and furnish an estimate as to
the probable receipts Of the new routes.
Mr.. Bristow Is well-known as a man
Of determination who cannot be in
fiuenced in the discharge Of his duty.
he f4 %
free delivery system from patronage
and politics, 1t is the opinion Of those
who know him that he will accomplish
that end. All the politicians in public
life will not be able to intimidate him
or cause him to abandon his deter
mination, 1t Is said.
Will Throw Politicians Into q Fit.
1t is impossible to overestimate the
sensation Mr.. Bristow's new policy
will create. It will be antagonized by
every senator and representative now
in congress or who may hereafter be
elected. The patronage afforded by
the rural free delivery service has be-
come an important part Of each public
mans fence repairing outfit. He
counts on 1t as means Of continuing
his. career. It Is certain that senators
and representatives will seek to pro-
cure the removal of Mr.. Bristow. If
they fail, attempts will be made to cir
cumvent him by legislation.
Mr.. Bristow will still further in
crease his unpopularity by reviewing
all the rural routes now In operation.
He Will weed them out and abandon
those established as the result Of mis-
representation. He will nullyfy many
Of those found to be absolutely use
less.
Four states-Illinois, Iowa, Indiana
and Ohio-have more than one-third
Of all Of the rural routes in the United
States.
Many leading Republican statesmen
come from these four states. They
were given 1892 routes out Of 11,199
put in operation. AS this patronage
has all been obliterated in one day, it
Is not difficult to predict the protests
and complaints that will follow.
Why Henry c. Payne. vice chairman
of the Republican national committee,
and a shrewd manipulation Of all things
beneficial to the party, has approved
the iconoclastic policy Of Mr.. Brlstow
is beyond the understanding Of the
few politicians now here. They can
not yet realize that a man Of Mr.
Payne's experience in practical politics,
expressly appointed by Roosevelt to
build up great machine for the pur-
pose of securing for him the next pres