The Lakeland evening telegram. (Lakeland, Fla.) 1911-1922, 1912-05-25
PARCELS POST.

| hdI Stu u. tApI t>s 'N4ii iuHiN'' anu
thus reduces the cost q goods 10 the
consumer
Now who are back OF all this?
First some misguided enthusiasts
who believe they are doing the pub
lie service and who do no; see the
ether side of the proposition
Secondly. the ambition OF a pub
lie official who wants to make a hit
with the public.
Lastly and really. though not os-
tensibly. the catalogue or mail order
houses who are very DESTROYS of
using the government to draw thei:
chestnuts out OF the fire and who
want the government TO assume some
CT the expenses which the mail
| houses themselves should assume. II
i: not the governments business 10
40 anything which will tend TO give
the mail order houses an advantage
over the retailer.
| Now what would be the result Of
| the working of a general parcels
rost?
First, a very heavy deficit in the
| raral free delivery routes. for their
facilities are utterly inadequate to
handle either satisfactorily or eco
ironically the business with which
they would be flooded. This would
| only add further troubles to the COM
ElicatiOns of the pOstOfiice depart
| ment and they are unsatisfactory
enough as it is.
Secondly, and very seriously, the
retailer in the small town would be
forced into an unnatural competi-
tiOn with the mail order houses, who
would depend upon the government
to assume lot of the expenses which
they should assume themselves.
Thirdly. the farmer would really
be the greatest loser by parcels
post. lie would receive much less
for his products on account of the
changed conditions and the difficult
ty of finding a ready market, and all
this would necessarily and surely
be brought about by a parcels post
The advocates of the parcels post are
endeavoring to create an impression
in the minds of the farmer that he
would buy his necessities at a very
much less price than he possibly can
get from local dealer Now. even
If this be true and open to very Sc
riOus doubt and argument. he would
find the market for his products TAX
en- away or would have to dispose of
them at less money. and consequent
ly the value of his farm would be
greatly reduced on account of these
changed conditions.
The real danger is that the parcels
post will bring about the same kind
OF a system of Capitalization as now
prevails in Europe and the follow
ing results would obtain:
The town or village would cease IL
be the religious, educational and So
cial center as before. The people OF
country communities would flock t.
cities to add to the evils of an al
ready cOngested population. Real rs.
tate in and about the deserted towns
and villages would materially de-
rreciate in value And this would
have its effect upon the outlyins
farm lands as had been found in sey.
eial instances where Il like condition
came about from different reasons.
Should the small country stor,
disappear. the farmer would lose 4
convenient market for his small pro.
duce, which may now be exchanged
FOR merchandise at the nearby eoun.
try store. Furthermore. with tn,
withdrawal of the small countr,
merchants and the decay of IN,
towns. the farmer would find hi.
market for larger products great,
restricted and he would be compelled
to haul his grain and other crops =
much greater distance than at IN.
present time.
The farmers in Europe live in vii
lagos. They go To and return from
: the land they farm every day. They
90 not live on their farms as We dc
The stores in these villages are yer,
small. They carry very light and in.
complete stocks Their asscrtmen-
Is almost entirely of staple goods
Well-to-do people buy their supple,
of all kinds direct from London
; Paris or Berlin. either by mail or b,
personal visits. The small dealer
simply has TO content himself with
the business he can pick up from la.
boring men and others who are toe
poor or too ignorant to buy ava,
. from home. All these small mer.