The Birmingham age-herald., 1911-06-18
PARCELS POST ID I COME UP AGAIN Matter Has Reached Point
 For Action NO BILL YET OFFERED Eleven Measures Introduced in House Providing for System But Senate Action Is Yet To
 Be Taken
NO BILL YET OFFERED
By JONATHAN WINFIELD


 subjects which will receive the atten- ton of Congress in the near future. The question has long been agitated, and has now reached the point where it's advocates believe they see an op- portunity for the entering wedge which will inaugurate the system in this country as it is established in most of the countries of the world
 Senator Bourne, leading progressive republican and chairman of the Senate committee on postoffices and postroads, position which the reactionary lead CTS found 1t impossible to deprive him of in the reorganization of the commit tees at the opening of the extraordin- ary session, has introduced a resolu- ton directing his committee to make an investigation of the steps necessary to be taken to amend the postal laws so as to permit of the establishment of the parcels post. And yet no bill has been offered in the Senate looking to the inauguration of the system as to part of the postal service, but it Is the intention of the senator from oregon to draft such measures, following the inquiry which his committee will make into the matter if the Senate can be induced to authorize it. While the sub ject of parcels post legislation is not included as part of the programme of legislation of the House for this session. there have been introduced in the House since the session began, II measures providing for the establish ment of the system. All of these b1lls are designed to have the parcels post established by degrees, to have It started and tried out on rural routes. Only one of the II bills provides for a | general parcels post, with a limit of II pounds to the package, the same as | provided by all save one of the coun- | tries with which the United States has a postal convention. This bill is fath- cred by Representative Sulzer of New York, one of the leading advocates of | the parcels post legislation.
 Although the democratic majority of the House is not committed to the proposition at this session, an arrange mcnt has been. made by Chairman Moon of the committee on postoffices and post reads, to grant hearings on the several measures, beginning on June IA. At that time all persons who are interested in the subjest will have an opportunity 10 appear and be sheard for or against the Legislation. These measures provide various methods for installing the par cels post, but, in general they seek to limit its operation for the purpose of experiment to the rural routes that Is to provide mat Il pdTcel WelBnlHS not more than Il pounds may be car ried by rural route carried from any point to any other point upon his route. This 1t is argued, would be no drain upon the resotirces of the postoffice de- partment, but Instead would be likely to produce revenue which would go a . leng way toward wlping out the pres q ent annual deficit in the department if it did not do so altogether.
 The probabilities are that, in the end, after hearing the arguments for and against the proposition, the committee the general postoffice appropriation bill next year which will direct the Post master General to designate certain rural routes upon which the parcels post experiment. shall be tried out and that the department shall at the end of a year report to Congress upon it's workings. The friends of such legisla- tion are so thoroughly convinced that 1t will prove a paying experiment that they are willing to have it started in this way, believing that 1t will here after grow and develop in much the same way that the rural free delivery system has grown.
 For years parcel post legislation was thwarted in Congress largely through the efforts of the late Senator Thomas c. Platt. the head of one of the big express companies. whose huge profits would have been materially curtailed if the govern mert were to go into the business of carrying small packages.
 glance at the profits made by the express companies shows the reason why such legislation Is so bitterly opposed by them. In 1909 the gross receipts of the American Express company were $31,- s09. 721. Its net earnings from the express business were $1,s09,254, upon a capitaliza- ton of s1,716.00i or an annual profit dur ing the year upon the capital invested fin, thn faf c aaf
 During the same year the net profits of the Wells Fargo Express company were TOT per cent. Net earnings of the Adams Express company. the Southern Express company and the other big express com- panies were correspondingly large
 In 1909 the various railroad of the coun- try received. from these four big express companies sums for carrying express as follows:
 From the Adams Express company, S14945, ,S96 56
 From the American Express company $f4621, ,072 16.
 From the Wells Fargo Express com pany, S11, 46 109. GO.
 From the United States Express com pany, s7,sS2, ,906.93.
 Under the contracts which the express companies have with the railroads for transportation of express matters from 45 to 55 per cent, or on the average about Al per cent, of the cost to shippers for express goes to the railroads, and the remaining 52.3 per cent goes to the ex- press companies which perform practical Iy only the terminal service.
 The United States has postal con ventions at the present time with 20 foreign countries and to 24 of these parcels weighing not more than II pounds are carried at the rate of 12 cents d pound while the domestic rate is Is cents a pound and the size of the package is limited to four pounds TO France alone of all the important countries is the limit fixed as low as four pounds, six ounces. The argument which the advocates of parcels post Legislation in Congress make, therefore, ie: If the United States can carry par cells to foreign countries at the rate of 12 cents a pound, why cannot it carry parcels weighing II pounds be- tween domestic points at the rate of 12 cents a pound? s-
 Parcels post legislation has been rec commended by President Taft in one of his messages to Congress and has sev- eral times been recommended by the Postmaster General in his annual re- ports.
 The subject is being agitated in both the Senate and the House and the friends of the system are hopeful that an experiment will be authorized in the ihear future.
 CHICHESTER z PIIlS S@ THE DIAMOND BRAND. A T.