Los Angeles herald., 1910-01-10
POSTOFFICE FINANCES

4 4l6 Ille StAS 6CoAlOll q AlhSS POSN
A. office deficiency must needs in
volve the country in sweeping postal
changes, which will affect principally
magazines and literary matter, it
would be we'll to ask and to answer
satisfactorily the question, Is there in
reality a big deficit? If every possible
and every right source of revenue for
the postoffice were yielded the returns
it would yield if honesty, impartiality
and fair play formed the basis of postal
POLICY, would there be any lack of
funds?
Please note we emphasize the word
POLICY. The postoffice itself is abso-
lutely blameless.
No branch, of the public service can
boast a higher average standard of
engaged in it's work. The postoffice
with all and with everybody the term
includes-does its duty. No workers in
the postoffice can be accused of in
efficiency, extravaganza, waste or of
any faint of corruption.
What, then, is the cause Of the deficit?
Obviously it must be sought for outside
of the big. official family of the mail
service. That is to say, it is not per-
sonally the fault of anyone. And yet,
while the personality of the service is
free from blame and is deserving of all
praise for most important duty per-
formed under conditions that often are
hampering and yeXatious, is it not
demonstrable the system is to blame?
Is it not plain reform of the system
would produce revenue ample for the
needs of the postoffice and tend to i'm
prove the efficiency of the service and
the promptness of transmissions and
deliveries?
Is it not fact the postoffice is en-
barrassed by variety of untoward
conditions, if it We're rid of which the
service would gain in every respect and
would rapidly become profitable?
Instead of airing a most Objectionable
proposal for an increased postal rate
which would have the effect of tax
on circulation of books and magazines
and editions of newspapers which carry
magazines as supplements, is it not
high time to ascertain definitely the
causes of the alleged or apparent de-
ficit and find out whether an elimina-
tion of those causes would not imme-
diately without vexatious rules and
taxes on knowledge and on art result
in a restoration of the postoff1e service.
to businesslike economic basis?
One Of the causes of the deficit is a
gross abuse of the franking privilege.
Public men who can command this
privilege use it for many purposes out
side the scope of the original inten-
tion. 1t was introduced for the purpose
of allowing the citizens of the United
States to receive information regard
ing important public business at Wash
ington, and in order that congressman
might keep their constituents we'll in
formed as to special phases of legisla-
ton affecting particular districts. The
original intention has been expanded
to a ridiculous degree of elasticity, and
as a consequence every congressman
who wishes to attract public attention
or keep in the public eye not only mails
reports of his addresses but forwards
all manner of material which he thinks
his privilege entities him to send to
his admiring constituents. Much of the
postoffice deficit may be ascribed to the
large amount of I'D. H." business it is
oop,na1lad m transact
Deprived of revenue by the gross
abuse of the franking privilege the
postoffice is drained of money by the
exorbitant charges of railroads for
carrying mail. 1t is gouged by unfair
or fraudulent methods of weighing up
mail, an operation conducted to the
utter (and intentionaD disadvantage Of
the government. The railroads succeed
in getting away with" an overcharge,
the elimination of which would reduce
very materially the alleged deficit
which on the face of it is so huge the
president proposes to adopt drastic
methods to repair it.
Drastic methods are not necessary.
Common sense and square dealing are
prime essentials In the reform, the