Norwich bulletin., 1911-02-14
Goverqment Is Heavy Loser By Carrying
 Magazines Second Class
PUBLISHERS MAKING BIG PROFITS
Postmaster General Defends Proposed Increase of Postal Rate on Advertising Pages of Big Periodcals-Does Not Affect Newspapers Department Loss Was $62OOO,OO0 in 1910 on Second-Class Matter.

Washington. Feb. 1s.-Large profits asserted to be inuring to the publish CTS of magazines and immense losses oustained by the government in the transportation of magazines as second cianD mail matter at existing rates. are made the basis of a statement is-. sued tonight by Postrraster General Hitchcock in responss to the attack made by the magazin< publishers upon the proposed increase of the postage rate on the advertising pages of the largo magazines, from one cent 60 four cents a pound.
 Only on Big Periodicals.
 Mfr. Hitchcock makes 1t clear that the proposed new rates "does not af- feet newspapers of any kind, nor does 1t apply to periodicals mailing less sue
 Applying the increase to the entire amount of second class mail matter" continues Mir. Hitchcock, "it would amount to less than one cent a pound"
 In the course of his statement he says:
 Tn a whole-page newspaper adver- tisement signed by thirty-four of the principal magazines and periodical publications of the country, 1t is stat ed that the increased rate wN drive o majority of the popular magazines
 
 enormous volume of profitable first class mail their advertising creates" The public should know that this charge is made in the face of the fact that q part, if not all, of the signers of the statement are realizing tremen- dous profits from the vast amount of high priced advertisements contained in the columns of their periodicals, which the government is today carry ing at the extraordinarily low rate of one cent per pound, and at Q total cost of moro than nine cents a pound.
 Other cIassss Pay Their Way.
 During the fiscal year 1910, over 800. 900 900 pounds of second class mail matter was carried through the public government, while the returns from third class matter were practically self sustaining. and on that of first and fourth class matter there was large saving of revenue. leaving the postal deficit for the year not quite $6.O0O,00 while the other classss Of mail matter the Arst and fourth classes large rev. enu8 10 derived. the great burden of the postal defleit lies at the door of second class mail matter. It remains to be determined whether the people epondencs, the publishers of books and pamphlets, and the senders of small shall be taxed to meet the defcit caused by the extension of the subsidiary rate to the publishers of the large magazines of the country.
 Millions in Advertising.
 Tt has been found on investigation that one of the great periodical publi- cations signing this protest, contained, from January l, 1910, to and including May z1, 1910. exclusive of cover pages, an average of 19,354 agate lines of ad- vertisinB matter. which, at the same rate. would make total of 1,00s, 40s lines for the year: and the gross value of the ordinary advertising space for one year would amount to $6,6ss.4Ss. The profits resulting from an increase of advertising rates. October 1. 1919. to wit, 3s57, ,106, would be approximate ly sufncient to pay the entire postage on both reading matter and advertis- ing. at four cents per pound, on the total nailings of this publication, PA 2sS.5l2 pounds during the fiscal year 1910.
 Profits Of the Magazine Business.
 "In . printed statement recently is- sued by tho president of one of the principal magazine publishing com panies of New York city, the exceed ingiy profitable nature of the maga- sine was clearly set forth. Speaking of the publication business of several of the signers of the protest against ths proposed Legislation he says that one of them. according to his own realizes . net profit of s1,- eo0,O poo annually; of another, the pub fisher of two great publications, that hie gros0 income ts moro than $6, ,000.- 600 annually. and that his net profits COG; of another that the business yields moro than ten per cent. on a capital of S10,oOoso00; of yet another that his bu9tuo98 represented c profit of 100 per cent year to its stockholders. Prstsst on creunds of Personal In
 tsrsst.
 From this ft is apparent that the grounds Of protest arc the personal in tereet of the publiahers. and not the welfare of advertisers or the general reading public.
 So far from being . discrimination. me proposed rate is q distinct step in the direction of equalization of postage rates. and it falls moro heavily. upon nn411tnes than on newspapers or small psriodicals enly where they exercise prtvileess not intended by the original postage statute. While newspapers and of less than four thousand pounds of maihngs at each issue are sxempe from its provision. vet this is warranted by the facts and 10 1us1 and equitable, as the trans portatiou of newspapers through the rublic mails is for a much shorter haul than that of msgAzines and pcriodicals.
 By the proposed law, nags zines and tn 90 far as they provide for public Information, are left exactly ou . par with newspapers and smaller perf0dioA18 while tho increase of rate cf three cents on the pound attaches only e thoae portions of such pulpit ratfons as ara devoted to advertising ISxpooog- EsprSss csmpaniss Get the Short
 haUles
 For short hauls, as from New Y orlx To Wa2hington or Baltimore magazine Dub1ishers invariably patronize the Dxpress companies. giving them the full benent. of tire carriage Of their p,lbli- rations on the only hauls on which the could receive anything like The proper return nOr the cost of car rlnge. while the iQnv heuis across the are refM13dA hy the <xpr@ss and left to tho ovsrbnrdeued l pab1ic mails becaue@ tho express copn-l pan1es will not cef1r them for a sum lDDroachIng the small price charged Dy 4hs government" Ssnsrsus Pretssss, Ans;pst ths. In
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