Deseret evening news. [volume] (Great Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1867-1920, 1909-03-24
POSTAL PROGRESS
OBJECT OF VISIT
President Black Of League Work
ing for Interest OF
Mail Users.
WILL BE HERE TOMORROW
lie Extends an Invitation 90 Interested
Persons TO Cau Upon Him
While lie h Here.

Frederick c. Beach president OF tho
Postol Progress league, win be In salt
lake tomorrow. in the interests OF the
organization with which he IS con-
rected. An invitation is extended 60
ono persons Interested in postoffice at
fairs 90 meet Mr. Beach at the Ken
SON hotel. which win be his head
quarters while In the city.
The aims and purposes OF the Postal
Progress league are set forth by Sec
rotary Treasurer Gamesh Corless as
follows;
"a hundred million dollar treasury
deficit confrOuts us, "a deficit largely
due TO tho Ice a pound postal tax on
general merchandise which practical
~ prohibits the transportation OF mer-
chandise by the postonice and which
in 1903, caused a deficit In the business
Of the free rural service Of $4,000 900
and I'm the general postal business
nearly 81 600 600
Under this destructive tax a wagon
load Of the average carrier-mail de-
livered and collected on this % mile
course. visiting over a 100 families.
amounts TO about 20 pounds. the mail
collected TO about two pounds and
the revenue therefrom to about 81 a
month, or about Si32 a year The sal
airy Is {S65 a year. making a net loss
on the business per carrier Of 1888 "a
year or Tor the So routes In opcr-
alton in 1905 $4,000 600 Profits from
the rest Of the business reduced the
deficit I'm the general postal business 20
about S17000,000.
1T is proposed to allow this condi-
ton OF things to continue and 70 meet
this needless loss by an inheritance
tax. a tax on tea or a stamp tax. We
propose 20 meet IL by SO reducing the
postal tax on merchandise tat the
rural carriers will be able to earn
their salaries by carrying merchandise
for their patrons and so that there VIII
be a profitable business done by the
pOstofilce In the general transportation
az merchandise.
"ws propose I'm the general service.
"a reduction in the present Ice pound
postal tariff on merchandise, the old Sc
rate OF 1874
In the rural service, We propose n
common tariff on all local mail mat
ters with the limit as 20 weight OF
95 pounds, as 10 space ] cubic foot, the
contents OF the ordinary suitcase or
peach basket and as TO Lengths feet
AS TO rates we propose the following
Parcels up 10 1-24 cubic foot, lX6Nl2
inches, ! cent.
Larger parcels up 10 One-haf cubic
foot. 6xl2Ni2 inches, cents.
Larger parcels up 20 one cubic foot
6X12x24. size OF the ordinary suitcase
or peach basket 10 cents.
THE needs OF the average rural fam
iIv would certainly require the posting
of one l0c package "a week to and from
the post town and the home and this
would insure an income TO the govern
ment OF over s4i 100000 a year while
the carriers load averaging less than
Is parcels occupying space less than
3x3x2 feet and Weighing possibly 250
pounds. would be quite within the ca
paoity of the one-horse post wagon.
Estimating the savings 10 the ru-
raj public from the necessity Of trans-
porting their produce and their sup
plies TO and from their respective post
towns and homes on their own backs
or by their own teams at but 90 cents
per week per family, the saving 20 the
100000 rural families would be over
800 900, 900 a year
THE present 16 cents a pound mer-
chandise tariff Is 100 per cent higher
than the postofice department deems
50 advisable or necessary. 100 per cent
higher than tho old common merchan-
disc tariff OF 1874; 100 per cent higher
than the sample parcen tariff of the
Universal Postal Union and % per cent
higher than our foreign merchandise
tariff The continuance Of the present
system. Of taxing one kind Of merchan-
disc cents a pound. printed books,
seeds, ETC., for planting and other
kinds Of merchandise l6 cents pound.
blank books seeds and bulbs, etc, for
food. Ia simply uncomfortable.
THE revision of the postal tarn
by the sixty-hrst Congress IS quite
as essential 20 the public welfare as
the revision of the custom tarin,