The Miller press. [volume] (Miller, S.D.) 190?-current, 1912-07-18
THE BREAD Line
How Proposed Parcels Post Bin
Will Affect It.
MEANS MORE BOYS TO CITY
What Young Country Lads &C Through
Before Swallowing Their Pride and
Getting in Line--Why German Mail
Hauis Are Cheap.

night, l came upon SohS0
mean attenuated string OF hungry,
hopeless men, out OF money, out or
luck. out of everything worth while
in this world. Many Of these men
would work II they had a chance but
the city is filled with unfortunate,
ablebodied fellows who haven't the
chance and while they look for means
OF sustenance, they become tempo
rarily bad citizens, objects OF charity,
some of them criminals. For a man
will steal when he is hungry enough
or sandbag when he is in desperate
straits. Law doesn't mean much to
the poor devil whose stomach is emp
ty and whose body Is weak from ex-
posure. Oftentimes arrest means q
jail which is better than no shelter
at all.
And as I observed this line OF men,
| could not but wonder how much
longer and more desperate it would
be under the parcels-post, mail-order
systematic system that would drive
so many nor country men into the
metropolis, there to swell the misery
and labor disaffections!
There are already too many people
in the cities. As upright, honorable
Americans who love the flag, We
should work for legislation and con-
ditions that will turn the tide from
the city to the country towns. We
should build up the small town and
encourage small farming around these
towns, for from such environment
spring rugged, intelligent sons n
r%ed-lipped, healthy daughters to take
the place OF the really great men OF
lines as it is; what we IA is more
country folk and fewer city folk. The
parcels post will give us more city
people. driving the country people into
the moil OF the metropolis. The par
cells post will deliver for the mail or
der houses supplies tor every house
hold at moral and financial loss to
that household inc in so doing will
starve out the country merchant,
crowd the country mechanic into the
city, put travelling men off the road.
send the country doctor to be a city
CRATER along with thousands of such
ilk now skinning the people in the
cities. The parcels post will close the
lawyers Offices in rural towns, throw
the stenographers out OF situations,
discharge all but a Few OF the preach
ers, discourage the music teacher, en-
tice the farmers daughter to the cities,
steal the manhood of country boys
for city m~ills-and, in a word, ruin
the country town!
You don't believe 1t?
How much more business IAN you
lose from your village without sacri-
ficing a merchant or two or a dozen?
Are the merchants OF your town get
ting rich from their stores? Suppose
the parcels post enables the mail Or
der houses to secure one-fourth OF the
business now enjoyed by your home
business men. Doesn't it stand to
reason that the town will be injured?
The mail order houses are now do
ing millions OF dollars of business in
the country towns. Wouldn't the
towns be more prosperous II this
money went to the home merchants?
And as the country town is being
injured the lure OF the city appeals
more and more to the country boy
and as he goes in countless numbers,
the bread line grows longer and hun
grier, hope burns to the empty brazier,
leaving only the ashes OF despair.
Parcels post, as advocated, is simply
another method OF distribution, an
other way OF serving the people. Now
we get our supplies by freight through
the local dealer. Under the proposed
parcels post We would cut out the
dealer and let Uncle Sam take our
taxes and pay for service which will
enable the mail order houses to ship
us anything, anywhere, up to eleven
pounds in weight for the same price
just as a two-cent stamp will take a
letter anywhere in the United States.
The friends of parcels post point at
England and Germany IND say, "See
how nicely it works."
But wait. The average haul for
mail matter in these parcels post coun-
tries Is 40 miles, against $40 in the
United States. And the man just put
side of Chicago would pay no less for
the transportation of his quart OF
prunes OF his dress suit than the gen.
tleman who lived in Oregon and like
wise bought from a Chicago cata-
log. But II costs more to send these
articles to Oregon! Who pays the av-
erage difference? Oh, Uncle Sam.
And you pay Uncle Sam-or help to
pay him.
1t now costs about "a cents to send
out the average-sized catalog of the
tig mail order houses. Under the par
GELS post law the ~catalog would go
for z cents. This would mean mole
catalogs. More catalogs mean more
orders. more orders mean less bust
ness for the home merchant and all
the evils that follow.
Germany owns her own railroads
and makes no charge for carrying the
mails. Note this big advantage. VII
lagos under 1000 do not have any
free delivery service at all but pay
about $4,000, 900 to the post office de-
n arunout opnualfv fO~ kha prtvtioUa M