The Manning times. [volume] (Manning, Clarendon County, S.C.) 1884-current, 1907-01-02
REFORM NEEDED
In the Matter OF Weighing the
Mail on Railways.
TO PREVENT GRkFII. 7.

The Railroads Have Had 4 Coco
Thing Of II. But Honest Bus.
iussS Methods Are HeTesf.
Ter to Be Adopisd-.ftst-
ter Up Ia Congress.
The Columbia Records Washing
ton correspondent says tits rsssoasn-j
certain that congress, st tie p.esen'
session, will provide By definite !sg:s
lssion for reaojustnenu OF tie n2sA
DDS Of weighing the mails carried .!
the Railways OF ths ccunsr.. Ins'
she method OF ascertsiu!cE the weigh
Of the mails no~ is not Only obsolete.
but insquitable is the conviction 81
rived at By impartial invast!sssosS'
The average daily wsises OF Ia
carried by a given railroad IS 1euoa os
weighing the mail for ninety success.
stye working" dsys. As 3 matter ot
f.os, the nsil is weighed Tor 1oo src.
cassiye DAYS, including Sundays, cut
instesd OF 1esahiIg tie average oy ol'
yfdtng the total weight By los, Ii Is
reached By dividing the total Eeig ii
by 90, the number Of what the law
terms working days. Nstural-;'
such 8 division increased tbs a7ersge
dsily weight, Oh which the psynoass
by the government are based.
The suojsca has oeen CONSIDERED oy
every postmaster general for . qusr-
ter Of . csn.ucy AID opinions have
been obtained from several attorneys
general OF the United States as TO one
legality OF the methods pursued by
the postoHace department.. In every
instance, the present method hss
been sustsined By these opinions
Congress never has seen fs to change
the law snd, consequently, every
postmaster general has followed tne
methods of bis predecessors In ehe
mail weighing and payments.
Rscentls, Representative Murocck'
OF .Ksnsas, 3 member Of the post
Office snd postroads cormittee, deliV
8 speech Ia tbs house il which he S.
serted that the government annually
was paying more money TO the .a1l'
roads for carrying the mails than
they were entitled to. In facS. he
said that In the past tTenty years
s40,0oo,o00 In excess OF righSful
charge had been pai3 to che railroads.
The subject has been discussed
pretty fully sincs the delivery Ct Mr,
Murdock' s speech, bosh among nen'
bers OF congress and in the neWspsp'
ers. In congress tentative, 81
though informal decision has been
reached to chsngs tie wording OF the
present Law. so that after the scs be.
comes effective, the railroads will be
paid, not Tor an average daily weight
Of mail struck in sry sease st random,
but for sn exact average found by oi.
vtding the total weight for q period
OF six morG1, for Instance, By the to
tal nunbe Of days including Sundays,
on which the mail IS weighed. This,
it Is consended will be fair alike tt
the railroads and to the government.
0, cou,se it Will reduce the railway
mail psy Of some OF the r.ilrosds, but
it is maintained they cannot com
plain reasonably cecusse they will
receive iull pay foc the service they
render.
The sglsstlon Of the question OF
railway mail pay mas Induced the post.
Office department to take up the sub,
ject again. In fact, Ii had been under
consideration by Postmaster Genera!
Co,telyou before MI. Murdoch deli
vered bis speech. he called FOR re.
port On the question from Seccad AS.
sistsnt Postmaster Gsrecal SEslsen-
bergar some time ago and now hss ii
un6er consideration.
It has been discovered By Inquiries
that 8 few Of the big rail1cad systems,
like tho Pennsylvania snd the New
York Central, are carrying the great
bulk OF the mail west Of New York
and east OF Chicago, while other i'm
portsnt hnss apparently hsVe been
Disseminated sgainst. Why this dis
elimination has been shown will bs
made 3 subject Of inquiry by the de
partmen5 and, very likely, by congress
It IS intimatsd that some interesting
facts n1sy be developed.