The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1912-09-17
THE PARCELS POST.


member of the postofice committee
of the senate, and who took an active
part in the framing of the parcels
post bill, says that perfection is not
claimed for the measure. He feels
that experience will furnish informa-
ton that will lead to it's improve
ment, however, and that it will ult1-
mately prove of great service to the
public
The demand, originally, was for a
uniform rate parcels post; that is to
say, parcels post with uniform
charge for service all over the United
States. "A mistaken idea existed, "
SAYS Senator Smith, that because a
uniform rate was charged for letters
the, government should carry pack
ages weighing as much as eleven
pounds at uniform rate with equal
facility The governments expense
consists of two elements-one for
handling the various packages, the
other for hauling them. The hand
ling expense is largely the same for
each package, but the hauling ex-
pense increases in proportion to the
weight of each package. The gov
eminent charges for it's mail service
two cents for eacn Ietter-the letter
cannot weigh over an ounce. The
experience of the postoffice depart
ment shows that the average letter
weighs a third of an ounce. A pack
age weighing eleven pounds there
fore weighs 52S times as much as
an average letter. The haul charge
is, therefore, 528 times as much an
element of cost to the government
on eleven pound packages as it is for
the average letter.
Senator Smith says that the con-
clusion was reached that justice to
the entire public would require low
er rates for hauls by the rural car
riers and for short distances of from
so to $50 miles than for the long
hauls across the country. The rural
carrier service for packages up to
eleven pounds was placed at five
cents for the first pound and one
cent for each additional pound, MAX
ing the cost of sending an eleven
pound package by rural delivery 10
cents. For a distance of fifty miles
the charge will be five cents for the
first pound and three cents for each
additional pound, making the charge
for an eleven-pound package 80
cents. For distance of $50 miles a
charge of five cents will be made for
the first pound and four cents for
each additional pound, making the
charge for an eleVen-pound package
as cents. The rates gradually in
crease until they reach a fat rate
of u cents a pound for distances OF
1890 miles or more.
Senator Smith and other friends OF
the parcels post believe that it will
be of inestimable benefit on the the
DRY that it will facilitate the distri'
button of farm products that now &C
to waste because they cannot be con
veniently placed in reach of city con
sumers. Unless the pOstOftice de
partment is to go into the produce
delivery business in the towns anC
cities, and in the c. o. D. business
besides, we cannot see where the dis
tribution of farm products will b.
helped much. If the rural carrier
are to gather up eggs, chickens, veg
etables and fruits and deliver then
to individual city addresses, and
delivery wagons are to be maintaine
for the performance of a like SCI
vice when the stuff comes in by raj
and if the carriers and drivers al
to collect from the addresses an
convey the money back to the shi
pers, maybe the problem of bringiI
the producers and the consume
closer together will, in a measul
be solved. But if the stuff is to
merely assembled in postofhc
where the consumer must go for
there will not be much OF a II
to make use of the new system.