Arizona republican., 1909-12-08

been taken by the congress with respect to the jail, the conditions of which are still anticipated and unsanitary. Il earnestly recommend the passage of a
 sufficient appropriation to secure a
 thorough remodeling of that institution
 to be made without delay. It is a re- proach to the national government
 that almost under the shadow of the 1 capitol dome prisoners should be con- fined in building destitute of the ordi
 nary decent appliances requisite to ] cleanliness and sanitary conditions.
 Postoffice Department.
 The deficit every year in the post 1 office department is largely caused by | the low rate of postage of one cent a pound charged on second class matter. | which includes not only newspapers | but magazines and miscellaneous periodicals. The actual loss growing out of the transmission of this second class mail matter al one cent a pound amounts to about sG3.O00.000 a year. The average cost of the transportation of this matter is more than nine cents a pound. It appears that the average ! distance over which newspapers are delivered to their customers is 291 miles. while the average haul of mag azines is I049 and of miscellaneous pe- riodicals ll2s miles.
 Thus. the average haul of the mag azine is three and one-half times and that of the miscellaneous periodical nearly four times the haul of the daily newspaper. yet all of them pay the same postage rate of one cent pound 1 The statistics of 1907 show that second | class mail matter constituted 63.91 per cent of the weight of all the mail and yielded only 5.l0 per cent of the rev enue.
 The figures given are startling and show the payment by the government of an enormous subsidy to the news papers. magazines and periodicals. and congress may well consider whether radical steps should not be taken to reduce the deficit in the postoffice de- partment caused by this discrepancy between the actual cost of transporta- ton and the compensation exacted 1 therefore
 A great saving might be made. amounting to much more than half of the loss. by imposing upon magazines and periodicals a higher rate of post age. They are much heavier than news papers and contain a much higher pro- portion of advertising to reading mat ter and the average distance of their transportation is three and half times as great.
 commend the whole subject to con- gross. not unmindful of the spread of intelligence which. low charge for carrying newspapers and periodicals f-t.. the wisdom of policy which consti- tutes so large subsidy and requires additional taxation to meet it.
 Postal Savings Banks.
 The second subject worthy of men ton in the postoffice department is the real necessity and entire practicability of establishing postal savings banks. The successful party at the last cleo ton declared in favor of postal say ings banks and although the proposi- tion finds opponents in many parts of the county. I am convinced that the people desire such banks and am sure that when the banks are furnished they will be productive of the utmost good. The postal savings banks are not con- stituted for the purpose of creating competition with other banks. The rate or interest upon deposits to which they would be limited would be so small as tO prevent their drawing de- pOsits away from other banks.
 I believe them to be necessary to of fer a proper inducement to thrift and saving to a great many people of small means who do not now have banking facilities and to whom such system would offer an opportunity for the ac- emulation of capital
 They will furnish a satisfactory sub stitute. based on sound principle and countries of the world, and a system of government guaranty of deposits ! now being adopted in several western states. which with deference to those l who advocate it seems to me to have | in it the seeds of demoralization to | conservative banking and certain | financial disaster.
 The question of how the money de- ! posted in postal savings banks shall be | invested is not free from difficulty but | believe that a satisfactory provision | for this purpose was inserted as an | amendment to the bill considered by | the senate at it's last session. It has | been proposed tO delay the cOnsidera- tion of legislation bearing on a postal | savings bank until after the report of the monetary commission. This report | Is likely to be delayed, and properly so. because of the necessity for careful de liberation and close investigation. I do not see why the one should be tied up with the other. It is understood that the monetary commission has looked into the systems of banking which now prevail abroad and has found that by q control there exercised in respect to reserves and the rates of exchange by some central authority panics are avoided. It is not apparent that a sys- tenn of postal savings banks would in any way interfere with a change to such a system here. Certainly in most of the countries of Europe where con- trol is thus exercised by a central au- thority. postal savings banks exist and are not thought to be inconsistent with a proper financial and banking sys- tenn.
 Ship Subsidy.
 Following the course of my distin- suished predecessor. I earnestly recom- mend to congress the consideration and passage of ship subsidy bill looking to the establishment of lines between