Evening journal., 1912-04-22
The Editor.
THE WILMINGTON JOURNAL.
Wilmington. Delaware

THE WILMINGTON JOURNAL.
Wilmington, Delaware.
Sir-With reference to the article published in the
edition of the Journal Of March 3Oth relative to the
withdrawal Of rural route No. l. Edgemoor Delaware,
from the village of Montrose beg to state that tenn
porary change Of the route authorized in view Of
representations made to this Office that the roads
through the village in bad condition Il is a
dltion precedent to the maintenance OF rural delivery
that roads shall be kept in such condition make
possible efficient and expeditions service at all times
AS appeared that service over large portion OF the
route being delayed owing TO the difficulty in
ing the village, It deemed to be in the general in
terest OF the service 10 omit that locality until road
ditions had improved.
The regular service on the route has been resumed
and further trouble is not anticipated
Respectfully
p. V. DEGRAW,
Fourth Assistant Postmaster General
We desire TO assure Mr.. DeGraw that THE EVENING
JOURNAL is a fair paper aud that the true
situation relative the suspension OF the rural
vice in Montrose known, It printed in edi-
orial published on April this frank and unsolicited
exoneration Of him from all blame
It is only fair to say that origin the Montrose
trouble at this end and that the Washington Off
cias acted upon misinformaton supplied from Brandy
wine hundred At time have the people in Monrose
had any iustion i'm relation to that In fact, It
that phase of the situation them all the
furious, following the summary cutting off Of the
vice They knew that the trouble was local and, If it
had been for that such order ever would have
from Washington. Nor were they long in discov
erng who was responsible for the suspension of tho
service The celebrity with which they acted
mcndablc IL mas hrOugnt ltb reward
II also is wish to say TO the Fourth Assistant
PostmasterGeneral that appreciate his action in
writing to us and explaining the situation. Unques-
tionably the directness with which he has dealt with
the trouble will make for him many friends in Della
ware, both within and without the Montrose district
THE EVENING JOURNAL took up the fight for Mont
because great principle involved It affected
all rural districts We knew and knew ofhcialdom
in Washington knew, that II rural carriers to be
permitted to exercise their influence the Department
in Washington to cut off the service all routes
which the -oads kept up to standard which
their approval half the service in this country
might abandoned whenever it suited the whm of car
riers TO make complaint
Il never has been the contention that the roads in
Montrose what they ought to be in Winter. The
trouble that the people there helpless. That
thriving little community has been incorporated;
the opened in the course Of development never
have been accepted for public maintenance
velopment is under no legal obligation 10 keep such
roads in repair But with it ALL Wish to add, that
the facilities there serving the rural mails better
than they in hundreds of other sections in which
there has interruption of the service II also
is reasonable TO assert that in community in which
coal wagons oil-tank wagons and delivery wagons,
! operate without interruption there is excuse
for the plea that light mail wagon, drawn
by two horses get through for the purpose Of
delivering the mails
What have done for Montrose stand ready to
do for any other community In Delaware that suffers
from like arbitrary cutting of Of mail facilities. We
say that without any feeling Of unfriendliness toward
Mr. DeGraw. who, we think, earnestly favors extend
Ing rather than turtaing, the scope of the rural
vice