The Colville examiner. [volume] (Colville, Wash.) 1907-1948, 1912-05-11

mously. Yet the system of railway mail
long period. And then in 1907 the IRE
vsing" was done by Uncle joe" Cam
non, the faithful servant of the capital
lists. According to Representative Cox,
a member of the house committee on
postofiices and postroads, the 1907 re-
vision" was not "A proportionate reduc-
tion. Which means that the govern
ment practically pays for the transpor-
tation of mails in 1911 under a system
of rates adopted in 1878.
But not satisfied with a system of ex-
horbitant rates the railroads cheat dur
ing the Weighing season. In this
patriotic work" the railroad companies
have the assistance of officials of the
postoffice department and even members
of congress.
AS is well known, the mail Is weighed
once every four years for a period of
three months. A daily average is then
computed which is used as the basis
for the railway mail pay for the entire
four years. Now, the weighing is done
during the spring when mail is heavy.
Several efforts to have the mail weighed
at other times of the year have failed
The railroads wouldn't mind to change
the weighing season to the three
months preceding Christmas, but they
seriously object to any other season.
And whatever is objected to by the
railroads does not pass in congress.
Then, there Is the car rental fraud
The government pays "A little over
S5,OO0,OOO rent every year for the use
of old and broken down wooden mail
cars. In 1911 the government paid on
the average $3,5751O for each postal
car The average cost of "A wooden mail
car is between $500 and $1,000.
Congressman Cox declared on the
floor of the house:
No business man oh earth could stand
for paying $3.575.10 upon an investment
of $1,000 each year and this is exactly
what 1t amounts to. For Il car which costs
the railroads $1,000 we pay them each
year for the use of the car, $3,575.10.
This Is equal to more than so per cent
each year upon their investment Al
though we are paying to the railroads
annually $3,575.1O for the use of each
railway postoffice car, this is in addl-
tion to the railway pay for the trans
panies get no pay whatever from ex-
press companies in the way of royalty
or lease. and haul for the express com
panies from two to four times cheaper
than they charge the government for
the transportation of mail, and still
make money out of their part of the
profits made by express companies
The postoffice department only requires
forty-foot space in n railway posi-
Office car and many of the railroads are
now building seventy-foot railway post
ONCE cars. This leaves thirty feet of
the car to be used by the railroads in
either carrying express or baggage, and
this very thing the railroads are doing
in hundreds of instances today, and the
people are paying for part of the car
now being used by the railroads i'm
Whlch TO transport baggage or express.
1t would require "A sum of money equal
to $59,5S5 loaned out at per cent to
bring In each year $3.575.t0, and an
average cost of constructing one mile
of railroad in this country by grading
putting cross ties upon It., with steel
rahs, ready for locomotives. and trains
OF cars to pass over 1t. does not equal
upon an average the sum of $595S5
Neither the United States steel trust
although Incorporated for 81 400. 900, 600.
nor the Standard oil Company. at the
head of which is the greatest magnate
upon the earth, John ID. Rockefeller.
could stand this constant drain; vet the
government Of the United States for the
last forty years has been standing It,