The daily Gate City. [volume] (Keokuk, Iowa) 1855-1916, 1910-08-19
NEEDLESS ALARM.


NEEDLESS ALARM.
The Cantril New Era is very much
concerned over what it believes is a
desire on the part Of the Postoffice
Department to favor what is known
as star routes at the expense of ru-
raj free delivery. AS grounds for its
fears 1t enumerates the following:
1t appears that the department is
not altogether friendly with the rura!
delivery system but on the contrary
lavors the star routes. This Is made
plain by the fact that from January l.,
to July l Of the present year only
three new routes have been establish
ed and put into operation. Then on
July /, last, by order of the postmasi
ter general, the star route division.
which has always been under the ju-
risdiction of the second assistant post
master general, was consolidated with
1 the rural free delivery division In
| the Office OF the fourth assistant post
master general and hereafter the bust
ness of the two services will be con-
Quoted in division known as the
rural mail division.
We would recommend that the rural
patrons of Cantril investigate this
matter at once and inquire of Con-
gresham Kennedy, who is up for a
lsecond term at the coming election.
whether he favors proposition of
this kind. 1t is fact beyond ques-
ton that this change will be made If
hthe 100000 rural patrons do not
sappeal to their Congressman Rural
route patrons, it is your move"
The New Era is needlessly alarmed.
1t is not clear how it acquired the inn
preston that the postoffice depart
ment is not friendly to rural free
delivery, but favors the star routes
instead, for nothing could be further
from the facts in the case. Rural de-
livery is the acknowledged pet" of
the postoffice department, as every
postmaster generals report since 1t
d was first established clearly shows,
while the star routes have long been
non grata and are being abolished
wherever and whenever possible.
These routes long antedate rural free
delivery. They were instituted to sup
ply mail to communities not reached
by railroad, steamboat and steamship
lines. With the growth and develop
ment of the railway systems of the
country their number has progressive
ly diminished. When rural free deliv-
cry was established and extended
their number diminished still more
rapidly until there are now only a
few left as compared with the number
ago. Most of them are in the noun.
famous regions of the west where
they serve communities which the rail
roads cannot reach. Elsewhere they
are exceptional; some of them afford
special and all of them limited serv
; ice. At the present moment we car
recall but one star route in south
eastern Iowa, whereas at one time
they were numbered by the score
; That solitary route is from Batavia
to Keosauqua, and the carrier covers
| the route but one day in the week
! making trip every Sunday morning
The fact that only a few new rura
delivery routes have been established
thus far the present year is easily ey
planned In the first place, the coun
try is now pretty well covered by sucl
routes and the opportunities for es
+ Enlistment of new routes are not al
q great as before. Secondly, the de
partment has been bending its ener
y gies during the past year toward less
S ening the expense of the postal serv
Q Ice. with view of avoiding deficit
e which has been the rule heretofore
q In this 1t has been eminently success
q full, but the result was made possible
L only by keeping down expenditures
= 1t was proposed by Postmaster Ger
y eral Hitchcock to increase the posta
u revenues by putting magazines in
class by themselves at a higher rat
= of postage, commensurate with tn
. cost of transporting them, but hi
. proposition was misunderstood to In
I .clude newspapers and the latter raise
= such howl about it that nothing wa
:. done in the matter The department
= instead directed its energies to tn
: curtailment of expenses, as the onl
:. alternative That fewer rural route
:, should be established under the eli
cumstanees was perfectly logical.
The transfer of the star routes fror
the second to the fourth assistan
). postmaster generals office is who'll
: without significance. The change wa
made purely for convenience of admir-
:, istration and supervision. Under tn
! old arrangement two sets of official
- were maintained at Washington an
! two sets of inspectors were trayelin
= about the country over the same te
:, ritory, in some instances. BY conso
- idating control of the star routes wit
- control of the rural routes. forming
single division known as the divisio
% of rural mails, considerable unnece
.s sary expense will be avoided and be
In ter service assured. There is no prol
IN ability whatever that rural free deli
De cry will suffer in the least from tn
e, change. On the contrary, wheneve
possible 1t will take the place of til