Watertown republican. [volume] (Watertown, Wis.) 1860-1906, 1905-01-04
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 4, 1905.
For a Parcels Post.

No one wants the government to run
parcels post as a philanthropy. The
private express companies are not in
business for philanthropic purposes.
Yet they manage to stay IN business.
The people who say that the estab-
lishment OF a parcels post as part of
the post office department would
merely swell the deficit of the post
Office department assume that there
is no money in carrying parcels
There are certain rich men in the
United States whose yachts and auto
con trary.
At present the post office department
OF the United States divides it's bust
ness into four classes, roughly, as fol-
lows:
First class-Letters or any other
sealed matter, l cents an ounce, or 80
cents pound.
Second Class-Periodical publica-
tions, such as newspapers and maya
zines, l cent a pound.
Third Class-Books, pamphlets, and
other printed matter not periodical in
nature, cent an ounce, or s cents a
pound.
Fourth ss-Merchandise. l cent
an ounce or 16 censs pound.
1t is this fourth class that consti-
tutes our present parcels post. The
rate imposed upon it is prohibitive for
all except exceedingly small parcels.
A two pound parcel sent from one
point to any other costs 80 cents. The
postoffice regulation that no parcel
shall weigh more than four pounds is
almost unnecessary. Few persons
think OF sending a four pound parcel
by mail at the present rate. The
charge for such a parcel would amount
to "a cents.
The object. or at any rate. the con
sequence, of the present fourth class
rates and regulations is that there can
be no competition with express com
panies. A distinguished postmaster
general once said: There are four
reasons why we do not have United
States parcels post: One is the Adams
Express Company; the second is the
American Express Company; the third
is the United States Express Com
pany; and the fourth is the Wells-Far-
go Express Company.
No one can honestly complain, OF
course, if the express companies resist
movement which would expose them
to competition. But neither, on the
other hand, should the express com
panies lift up their heads in surprise
and horror if the people of this coun-
try request the post Office department
to engage actively In a kind of bust
ness which is a perfectly legitimate ex-
tension Of it's present ie]d.'
The postoffice department. of almost
all other civilized countries carry par
cells on remunerative basis, The
postoffice department of the United
States ought to expand into the parcel
carrying business as fast as is consist
ent with adequate returns. 1t has an
immense collecting and distributing
machine already in existence It has
the facilities for stimulating the bust
ness of America by providing cheap
transportation for small packages of
merchandise.
The present postmaster general has
suggested small parcels post expert
ment. He would have congress pass a
law allowing packages not exceeding
five pounds in weight to be mailed at
the distributing posGoffice of any free
delivery to any person on that QUITE at
the rate of cents pound. He thinks
that IN this way the deficit due to rural
free mail delivery would be consider
ably reduced. He thinks his plan is
practicable. He ought to know. The
principle certainly is right. The post
office ought to be used by the people
of America, who own it, as means of
convenience and utility in any way
which is congenial to it's original pur-
pose and which will not plunge it into
financial aster,-Chicago Tribune.