The St. Lucie County tribune. (Fort Pierce, St. Lucie County, Fla.) 1905-1920, 1909-01-29
NEW FORM OF
PARCELSPOST
Will Help the Farmer,the Country
Merchant and Other Citizens
A TRIAL IS PROPOSED
A Good Business Proposition that Would
Bring in Several Million Dollars TO The
Government Without Increased Cost

The one great business in which the
Federal Government is engaged is
losing venture. The manager of the
business Postmaster-G General has
just reported to the President of the
company that, with receipts of over
5000, 600, 900 last year, the concern lost
nearly $l7, 900, 000 He estimates that
next year the deficit will be nearly as
large. Carrying the mails under pres
ent conditions is evidently not profit
able undertaking for this concern the
United States from a purely business
point of view. But is this yearly loss
inevitable? Must the business go on
costing the people an increasing amount
in taxation every year? The manager
of the business says No. He recon-
mends to the President, and the Presi-
dent recommends to the Board of Di-
rectOrs Gf we may push the analogy of
Congress), a project which will. in
their judgment, go far to wipe out the
yearly deficit. The plan is simple.
There are in operation throughout the
country 80, SIG rural free delivery routes
serving more than eighteen millions of
people. Each carrier on these routes
makes his rounds with a horse and
WAGON, but much of the available ca
pacity of his wagon remains unused.
He is permitted to carry no package
weighing more than four pounds; and
the rate charged for the carrying of
parcels-8 cents pound for printed
matter, l6 cents pound for merchan-
disc, the regular postal rates-are pro-
hibitive to the rural dweller for com
mon use. Let us introduce, says the
Postmaster General. on rural free de-
livery routes, limited parcels post,
allowing the transportation of parcels
up to eleven pounds in weight between
points on the same route at rate of 5
cents for the first pound and two cents
for each additional pound. Then the
farmer may order by telephone or pos
nearest town, and have his purchases
delivered at his door for small charge.
The convenience to the country dweller
will be enormous. Many trip to town
with horse and wagon will be saved
The stOrekeeper in the small town will
profit as well. If his customers in the
country around can get articles just at
the time the want them, with a mini
mum of effort and cost, they will buy
more things. AS the Postmaster-Gen-
eral says: "The reason for increased
consumption in the cities is that goods
are accessible, and are invariably de-
ivered to the purchaser. The town
dealer would be protected from compe.
tition on the part of the great mail
order houses in the large cities, for mo
merchant or dealer not bona-fide resi-
dent of the town in which the diStrbut-
ing postoffice is located or on the rural
route would be permitted to have goods
delivered at the proposed special rate,
and packages would not be accepted
from any person acting as agent for IA
concern located outside of the delivery
limits of the rural routes" The bust
ness of local merchants would be eX-
tended. the convenience of the eighteen
million persons living along rural deliv-
cry routes would be served, and incl
dentally the postal deficit would be sub
stantially reduced. If each rural ear
rier delivered SIS pounds each trip dur
ing the year, an income of Sl5, OO0000
would be earned. The Government
would be at no added cost for railway
and there would be little
added expense of any kind. Postmas-
ter-General Meyers conclusion is inds-
putable: 'Were the Post Office De-
partment a modern business corpora
ton, it's board of directors would not
hesitate forty-eight hours toutilize the
present machinery and establish Inn
tied local parcel post on rural routes.
The Outlook agrees with Mr.. Meyer
and President Roosevelt that a rural
parcel post ought, in justice to the
farmer, the country merchant and the
taxpayer, to be instituted at this SEES
sion of Congress. At the very latest,
the Postmaster-Generals cautious rec
that the plan be tried in
four counties should be adopted.