The Owosso times. (Owosso, Mich.) 1897-1926, 1904-05-06
ON A NEW BASIS.
Change in the Law Places the Rural
Carriers.

Change in the Law Places the Rural
Carriers.
Washington, d. c., April 2S.-The
general feeling about congress is that
the rural free delivery service of the
country will be greatly benefited by the
new legislation to become effective
July 1. 1t is not contended that the
increase of salary voted the carriers is
as large as it should be, but raise
from $500 year to $720 year brings
the pay up to living wages. The i'm
portant thing, as the friinds of the car
riers see it, is that the service has been
put on distinct government basis. No
longer half public and half private
servants, the carriers will be in position
to expect such treatment as is accorded
other men in the service of the United
States. Undoubtedly the salary would
have been fixed at $500 year if the
president of the National Carriers as
ISOLATION had not made the fatal mis-
take of becoming involved with the
newspapers and mail order houses that
were so anxious to have carriers con-
tinued as half huckster. In carrying
on that campaign in the interest of pri-
vate concerns, many things were done
that tended to prejudice congress
against increasing salaries at this time
beyond $50 month limit.
of 1,o do
at the session beginning in December
to increase the pay to $500 year, and
if President Cunningham does not re-
peat his mistakes of this session, the
carriers will stand an excellent chance
of securing the additional increase. The
prohibition against carriers acting as
agents Will, of course, put them in a
more advantageous position when it
comes time for them to ask for another
| increase
Not only the members of congress,
but the officials of the postoffice depart
ment feel that the service will be great
| ly benefited by the prohibition of car
riers acting as agents. In the end.
after the subject had been carefully
studied every senator and representa-
tive saw how important it was that
carriers be placed on an equality with
other servants of the government
They came to regard it as business
proposition. They saw that the govern
ment could not afford to maintain at
an enormous expense an army of EN-
ployes who were privileged to sell their
services to private concerns, and who,
under the circumstances, were bound
to show favoritism in taking private
employment.
Congress is congratulating itself, too
that it will accomplish the reform with
out any inconvenience to the farmers
who have been in the habit of depend
ing on the rural carriers for small
favors. 1t is stipulated that the car
riers may carry parcels for patrons liv-
ing on their routes when patrons make
the request, provided the service does
not interfere with the carriers duty to
the government. A little later the
postmaster general will prepare regula-
tions under which this neighborly SER
vice may be performed. Undoubtedly
the department will instruct the car
riers that they may do any reasonable
errand for patron, providing the doing
of it will not delay the mail. For in
stance, if the farmers wife wants ten
pounds of sugar from the grocery down
in town, or medicine from the drug
store, or the farmer wishes repairs for
his reaper or moving machine, the SER
vice may be performed. The carrier,
under the new law, is not compelled to
render the service, but he may, and, if
he does, he is permitted to receive pay
from the patron for his service
AS persons interested in the reform
view the matter the most wholesome
provision is the one which absolutely
prohibits carriers from acting as agents
and forbids them from soliciting bust
ness or receiving orders of any kind for
any person, firm or corporation. This
means that mail order houses will have
to depend on the mails exclusively, and
that newspapers, instead of employing
carriers as agents and collectors, will
have to send out their own agents along
the rural routes, and will have to pay
postage on newspapers delivered by car
riers. The retail merchants in the
smaller cities and towns of the country
were especially interested in having this
provision agreed to. In many places
they were beginning to feel the effect
of mail order houses in few of the
large cities working" the country
through the employees of the govern