The Washington herald., 1911-08-02
HITCHCOCK ASKS
FOR HIGHER RATE
Second-class Mail Contro-
verSy Before Committee.

New York, Aug. 1.-The comission
which was appointed by Congress at
its last regular session to investigate
and report on the laws relating to
second-class mail matter began Its
hearings to-day The commissioners
are: Justice Charles E. Hughes. A. Law
renee Lowell. president of Harvard, and
Harry A. Wheeler, of Chicago.
Postmaster General Frank Hitchcock
took the stand in the morning and was
followed later by Second Assistant Post
master General Joseph Stewart and
Third Assistant Postmaster General
James Britt. The administration de-
voted its remarks to the discrepancy
in the receipts and expenses of first
class mail matter with those of sec
ond-class mail matter, and an appeal
for change in the existing laws
which will make them simpler to ad-
minister and also will make possible
self-supporting post-oftice.
The publishers were represented by
numerous attorneys who took little
part in the proceedings to-day. Sew
eral publications, including the Review
of Reviews, Everybody's Magazine, Ad-
venture. the Ladies' Home Journal, Nc
Cluer's, and the Saturday Evening Post,
were represented by Herbert Noble and
James B. Sheehan. The attorneys will
cross-eXamine the government repre-
sentatives Eo-morrow, and will pay
particular attention, they said, to Sec
ond Assistant Postmaster General
Stewart.
Hitchcock Wants Change.
Postmaster General Hitchcock gave
a general statement of the case. which
he is presenting and left the submis-
sion of the data which he has collect ed
in his support to his assistants. He
thought that 1t would be for the good
of the postal service to continue the
general principles which he has been
endeavoring to put into practice.
He wants the operation of the serv-
ice on a self-supporting basis, the ad-
justment of rates SO that the charges
for each class of mail matter will yield
revenues sufficient for handling IT, the
adjustment of rates on the basis of the
average cost of transporting ii over
the country as a whole, and simpliflCa-
tion of the laws.
The appointment of the commission
vas caused by the agitation over the ef-
forts of the Postmaster General to in
crease the rates for magazines which
contain advertising matter, and most OF
the evidence which was submitted to the
tO-udy was LOT IIo purpose
of probing the necessity for such d
change.
Second Class Deficit.
Postmaster General Hitchcock said
that the statistics for 1910 show that
8, $40, ,164,623 pieces OF frst-class mail were
carried. The cost of handling this was
$S6, 792, 5l1.35, and the revenue from the
charges was SlJ4. 796. 66SO7. giving a sur
plus OF s6s.0G4, ,l56.73. During the same
year the cost for carrying the second
class mail matter was $50. .79l, ,6l5.03, and
the returns from the postage We're only
$l0.607, ,Z71.02. which made a total loss of
$40, 1A, 34401.
''As the profit arising from the hand
ling and transportation of flrst-class
matter is almost equal TO the loss sus-
tanned by the handling and carrying Of
the second-class matter. il will be readily
seen that an equalization of rates on the
basis of the cost of service would per-
nit a reduction in letter postage from
cents to l cent an ounce" said the
Postmaster General.
There seems to be two policies in re-
gard to the rate to De charged for sec
ond-class mail matter" said Mr.. Hitch
cock. The first is to transport publica-
tions at a nominal charge in return for
the services OF the purpose in spreading
information, and the second is to make
the rate such that it will cover the ex-
pense of handling"