The Montgomery advertiser., 1906-04-18
BITTERNESS
 IN CONGRESS Scars Left by Fast Mail
 Fight. HARD SAYINGS DURING DEBATE Have Not Ceased to Sting the Members Criticised. Fact that the Subsidy Was Saved by Only One Vote Has Not PIa-
 cated Southsrner. Who
 Fought It.
HARD SAYINGS DURING DEBATE

The lively fight in the House over the fast mail appropriation for the service between Washington and New Orleans over the Southern and other lines. has stirred up between certain members of that body feelings that may develop into actual animosities if the talk con- tnues many days longer. It will be recalled that some hard sayings were indulged in during the debates while the postoffice bill was before the House. but in the private conversations the utterances are even more caustic.
 The opponents of the special mail facilities item are bitterly disappointed that they did not knock 1t out Of the bill, and to be defeated by the narrow l majority of one was ali the moro gall ing. Of course. they realize that the fast mail proposition will be taken care of by the Senate. Indeed. had the item been eliminated. it was quite cer- tain that 1t would have been restored by the Senate. That happened once before.
 Advocates of the Special malls fa- cilities" since the fight ended are in- duiginE in rather severe comments aimed at their opponents. They charge that the latter not only denounced this appropriation as a clear subsidy to the railroads. but they also are privately charging that 1t is nothing short of steal" It turns out that if 1t had not been for the extra exertions put forth by several of the Southern mem- bers the item would have been knocked out. Two of the California delegation and four or five members from the Gen. tral West were just about to have themselves recorded in the negative, but they were approached in time. They said that on account of the opposition speeches by so many Southern mem AaA l@<. did not care for the mail service.
 Mv. Wiley Retoices.
 Representative Wiley of the Mont gomery district re5oicas greatly that this item remained in the bill and will have such plain sailing fin the Senate. He says that 1t is of the greatest im- portance to the people from Baltimore clear to New Orleans. and that had it been cut out the business men and the farmers would have felt the loss very keenly. Colonel Wiley calls ate tention to the fact that some of the statesmen who so ardentiy opposed the special mail facilities'' do not have a word to say against the S500,000 ap- propriation for the pneumatic tube service in the cities of New York and Chicago. That service is very costly and all that is claimed for 1t Is that it enables business men in the two big cities to get their mail few minutes earlier than would be the case if the tubes were not in operation.
 Then again there is the sum of s750,000 extra for the foreign mall service. If the money for the South Is a subsidy or a "steal" Southern sup porters of the fast mall say the appro- priations for the pneumatic tubes and the foreign malls ought to be looked upon as being in the same class At New York, San Francisco. Seattle and Santiago the $750,000 is used to em- ploy boats to go out and meet the for eign vessels that arc detained at guar antine for examination and inspection. c9 which cannot get into port promptly on account of low tides. fogs. etc. The business men of the cities mentioned demand the extra money so that their mails can be delivered speedily. Col onl Wiley says that the money should be voted for both the services last mentioned. and that neither he nor any of the friends of tho special mails" facilities for the South voted against those items or said anything against them.
 Advantages of Fast Mail.
 Their opponents. though. who could only sec fraud in the Southern propo- sition did not discover anything wrong in the proposition to grant subsidies" or "steals' in aid of the Southern Pa- cifs and Santa Fe Railroads, and they raised not the slightest objection to the big sums for the pneumatic tube and the foreign mail services. All through the South Colonel Wiley and other members from that section say that the fast mail as at present sched- uled enables the small business men of the larger cities and towns to get their Eastern and Northern mail many hours earlier than was possible under ta old system. and the people in the villages, the store-keepers at the cross roads and the farmers are benefited immensely Their mail is received hours earlier than formerly. and in various counties this fast mall reach es certain points at the right time to catch the rural carriers that delivers letters and papers on routes that have only d tri-weekly mall.
 The Senate Postoffices Committee will undoubtedly still further increase the general appropriations for the pos tai service IL always does. and 1t is a well known fact that some of the really cute members of the House Com mittee who arc of Republican persua- sion have habit of leaving what they regard as extravagances to the august body at the other end of the big white building.
 Congressmen who make careful study of postal matters assert that the department would not have deficit but for the general desire of the bus mess interests of the United States that everything possible for the ex- tension of the ail facilities should be done, The large increase in the allowance for free rural delivery pre- vents the postoffic departmnt from be- coming d profitable institution for Uu- cis sam. These expenses will continue to Increase. in the opinion of the mos5 propIneut CongrcSSmCn.