Montpelier examiner. [volume] (Montpelier, Idaho) 1895-1937, 1912-07-26
THE BREAD LINE
How Proposed Parcels Post Bill
win Affect 1t.
MEANS MORE BOYS TO CITY
What Young Country Lads Co Through
Before Swallowing Their Pride and
Getting In Line-Why German Mall
Hauls Are Cheap.

hne-an attenuated string OF hungry,
hopeless men, out OF money. out OF
luck, out OF everything worth while
in this world Many of these men
would work If they had chance but
the city is filled with unfortunate.
ablebodied fellows who haven't the
chance and while they look for means
of sustenance, they become tempo
rarily bad citizens, objects OF charity,
some Of them criminals. For a man
will steal when he is hungry enough
or sandbag when he is in desperate
straits. Law doesn't mean much to
the poor devil whose stomach is emp
ty and whose body is weak from ex-
posure Oftentimes arrest means a
jail which is better than no shelter
at all.
And as / observed this line OF men,
could not but wonder how much
longer and more desperate 1t would
be under the parcels-post, mail-order
systematic system that would drive
SO many more country men into the
metropolis, there to swell the misery
and labor distractions!
There are already too many people
in the cities AS upright, honorable
Americans who love the flag, we
should work for legislation and con-
ditions that will turn the tide from
the city to the country towns. We
should build up the small town and
encourage small farming around these
towns, for from such environment
spring rugged. intelligent sons and
red-lipped, healthy daughters to take
the place of the really great men OF
the nation. We have too many. bread
lines as 1t is; what We want is more
country folk and fewer city folk. The
parcels post will give us more city
people. driving the country people into
| the moil of the metropolis. The par
cells post Will deliver for the mail or
der houses supplies for every house
hold at moral and financial loss to
that household and in so doing will
starve out the country merchant,
crowd the country mechanic into the
| city. put travelling men off the road,
send the country doctor to be city
CRATER along with thousands of such
ilk now skinning the people in the
cities. The parcels post will close the
lawyers Offices in rural towns. throw
the stenographers out of situations,
discharge all but few of the preach
ers, discourage the music teacher, en-
tice the farmers daughter to the cities,
steal the manhood of country boys
for city withstand, in word. ruin
the country town.
You don't believe 1t?
| How much more business can you
lose from your village without sacri-
| ficing a merchant or two or dozen
Are the merchants of your town get
ting rich from their stores? Suppose
the parcels post enables the mail or
der houses to secure one-fourth OF the
business now enjoyed by your home
business men. Doesn't it stand to
reason that the town will be injured !?
The mail order houses are now do
ing millions OF dollars of business in
the country towns. Wouldn't the
towns be more prosperous II this
money went to the home merchants
And as the country town is being
injured the lure OF the city appeals
more and more to the country boy
and as he goes In countless numbers
the bread line grows longer and hun
grier. hope burns TO the empty brazier
leaving only the ashes OF despair.
Parcels post, as advocated, is simply
another method Of distribution. an
other way of serving the people. Nov
we get our supplies by freight through
the locpI dealer, Under the propose,
Parcels post we would cut out tn
dealer and let Uncle Sam take on
taxes and pay for service which vii
enable the mail order houses to shi
as anything, anywhere. up to eIevel
pounds In weight for the same price
! just as a two cent stamp will take
) letter anywhere in the United States
. The friends Of parcels post point a
Al England IT'D dermannss and say, See
how nicely II works."
But wait. The average haul -
mail matter in these parcels post coun
, tries is 40 miles, against $40 in tn,
I United States. And the man Just out
side of Chicago would pay no less 10
the transportation of his quart o
prunes OF his dress suit than the gen
tleman who lived in Oregon and like
wise bought from Chicago cats
q log. But llt costa more TO send thes,
articles TO oreponl Who pays the av
, erage difference? Oh. Uncle Sam
, And you pay Uncle Sam-or help t.
par him.
II now costs about "a cents to sent
out the average-sized eatalog OF tn,
big MT order houses. Under the par
/ GELS post law the catalog would 4
"a. 7 cents. This would mean NOR,
cata,ogs. Mors catslses mean NOR,
orders, more ORDERS fieaR less bust
ness for the home merchafs ana al
the evils that follow.
Germany owns her own railroad
ana mskea no charge for carrying TIM
msils. Nota this big advantage. VII
Lagos under 1000 do not have an!
fsxs delivery ! ,rvice at all but pa,
about $4,000. Zoo the post office de
partment annually FOR the privilege o
having box at tn posi- once Tn
cnig possible relief fF> 'ni very poo
service.
Under the proposed q iceis pos
the United States would y. VI 81
armer's present matt deliver serslc'
the carrier carrying only a mp
packages. The farmers, too. ~.
pay a large share of the enbf4A ~