The Rice belt journal. (Welsh, Calcasieu Parish, La.) 1900-19??, 1912-01-05
FIGHT ON |aCRELS|
Higher Rates on Second .c',,.
Mail Opposed.
BULLETIN FROM PUBLISHER,
postal Committee Of The A N,
Calls the Post Office a rs.I,
Managed Business

Washington.-The protest NJ :,
puohshers against the proposit,o, -. ~
increase secOnd-class mail y,,.o ~
The congressional post office con,.' =
sion desires is growing stronger d.,,s
The Illinois Daily Newspaper puhu.s
ers' association registered It's oh,s.
lions recently, and now the Amer,...
Newspaper Publishers associat,or'.
postal committee, Of which the ch,,'
man Is Don c. Seitz of the New Vow
World. has issued the following Nv,
letin: w
The extent to which the M,
office department does not carrv O..
ond-class matter ts we'll revealed !,
the following abstract of inou;rv :,
publishers conducted by house com
mittee on expenditures In the us
Office department William A. Ash
brook, chairman) concerning the val
ume, weight and handling of the ont
put of publications entered as mai
matter OF the second-class for III.
fiscal year ending June 80, 1911:
Inquiry was made Of all publish
ers, approximating thirty thousand q
which nearly seventeen thousand an
weekly publications.
More than ten thousand return,
were received, embracing sixtys,,
plus per cent. of all tonnage of uuh
locations.
THE publications reporting repr.
sent an annual output Of more than
six and one-half billion copies. thu
weight Of which was one and three
quarter billion pounds.
These publications delivered by
mail in such period weighed 6sS,Ola,
s02 pounds.
They delivered by their own car.
riers, newsboys, and news companies
SAC, 466,574 pounds, Of which an unas
certained percentage was carried to
destination by express and other rail
shipments outside the mail. They de-
livered by express. 202, 1880 pounds
and by other rail shipments 121,4sl.
74S pounds. The rate by express and
rail varies from Il to / cent per
pound, but the bulk of these ship
ments went at a rate of Y to y cent
per pound.
1.-The post Office for the year end
ing June 30, 1911. handled 951,OOl,.
669, and excluding one-half million
pounds free in county matter, It re-
ceived one cent per pound
"All this goes to add to the alb
surdity of the proposed Hitchcock leg
islation doubling the second-class rate
from one to two cents per pound, and
limiting the privilege to publications
that carry as much reading matter a.
they do advertising.
"The proposition was stupid enough
when the postal deficit reached ST.,
100000 two years ago. 1t becomes
preposterous IN face Of a surplus
What business has a transports
ton corporation, which is all the post
office is, to prescribe how business
shall be conducted?
Newspapers cannot afford to ex.
pand their columns beyond the call
Of the days news, nor can they be
expected to control the requirements
Of their advertisers WHO have a right
70 reach the public as copiously as
hey care TO.
ut cannot be assumed that such
legislation will ever get by congress.
But publishers are requested to fight
the theory that the right to send their
output by mail is a privilege The
figures show 1t is not.
1.-THE post Office is badly man
aged business. That is all We
should fight its dictation. its censor
ship and It's inefficiency."