The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1903-07-08
ENGLAND's PARCEL POST.
by Regulations in Other
Countries.

Great Britain's parcel post, estab-
lished in England year or two earlier
was extended to the colonies and for
eign countries in 1885, and is rapidly
growing in favor. Unfortunately the
regulations are extremely compli-
plicated, but this is largely due to the
varying requirements of the countries
Magazine.
The list of articles forbidden by the
countries of destination is amusing
enough, but the palm is assignable to
the artless announcement of our own
post office (on page 453 of the guide)
that it really will not undertake the
transmission of butter to tropical
countries!
One cannot feel surprised at the sui
tan's vetoing 'caricatures of notable
personages." His majesty also perse-
cutes books, magazines and newspa
pers, while Egypt only excludes books
on the Mussulman religion; Spain, mis-
sails and breviaries; Germany, social
istic literature. In Heine's poem,
Deutschland" he tells us how his
postmanteau was searched lin 1S44) at
Cologne for books Of a democratic ten
| dency. "You FOOLS he thought, gaz-
ing at the custom house officers; 81
have them all in my head!"
The rates of postage are here and
there somewhat anomalous. Why
should it cost So cents to send three
pound parcel to India, when the same
parcel can be sent to China for rs
cents?
The post Office of the United King
dom is celebrated for the badness of it's
bargains. 1t loses $25o,Ooo year by
free railway kilograms and it has al
lowed the National Telephone com
pany to become Frankenstein mon
ster. So when the parcel post was in
stituted it conceded SIS per cent. of the
receipts to the railway companies for
merely carrying the parcels, while I'M
dertnking itself the really troublesome
and expensive labor of collecting, sort
ing and double delivery-frst at the
railway station, afterward to the ad-
dressee. Some of these fatal feats of
negotiation make one think of the keen
and provident man of business, who, on
his sickbed, made an exceedingly adj
vantageous bargain with his own I'M
dertaker. Unable 10 revoke it's bar
gain with the railways, the post office,
obeying the law of "reversion to a low
er type" has returned to mail coaches
| (horse or motor), which now run on
most of the main roads from London
and restore little of the lost pic
turesqueness to the kings highway
| Though the highwaymen have not yet
resumed operations). BY these vehi-
cles II 100000 parcels year are saved
from the rapacity of the railways,
whose contract ends in 1904.
In many important respects the Ger
man postal arrangements are far SUI
perior to ours. To begin with the rail
ways have to carry all parcels under II
| charge lower rates-so low that it is
usual for schoolboys' linen % be posted
| home for the Family wash" The max
imum weight is 10 pounds, as against
II pounds in England. For a parcel
uninsured and not weighing more than
II pounds the postage is within 10
mile zone 25 pfennigs Qess than 6
| cents), and for any distance beyond,
in Germany and Austria, SO pfennigs-
just half the English charge. If the
| post Office collects the price on deliv-
cry it will forward it to the vendee
for fee of fro m 2 to s cents. 1t dis
tributes newspapers and transmits
| subscriptions. N'inally the German
trader can send a parcel weighing no
| pounds at post haste to any part of
| Germany or Austria for 6a cents.
By treaty with Germany only post
parcels weighing II pounds or less
posted in Germany will be carried to
their United States destination by
United States postal service without
limit as to miles at the rate of IL cents
per pound, all parcels, however. are