Daily capital journal. (Salem, Oregon) 1903-1919, 1912-03-19
SUNNYSIDE
FARMER ON
PARCELS POST
OPPOSES ESTABLISHMENT OF
DELIVERY OF PARCELS ON THE
RURAL ROUTES-WANTS TO GO
THE WHOLE HOG.
sunnyside, Or, March Is

Sunnyside, Or, March Is.
Ed. journal: see in your paper
Oh 1913 inst, an editorial on "Par.
cells Post" have waited ant
looked for some expression on par.
cells post by the people or an able
editorial on same. A parcels post
Tor all the people, not one-half fol
the express companies. Well, we
got an editorial on parcels post, bui
it's not all for the people. The
dear people" must give one-half tc
the four express companies. But ]
don't think our able editor wrote
those things, I think the devil did
1t. What in the name of common
sense can an intelligent man think
Of by advocating a local parcels post
When One-half Of the rural routes
start from railway stations where
there is no town at all. Nothing but
a local store, postofflce and black
smith shop, all there is there. As
the editorial bravely says, ship by
freight to the above named point
then put in packages for the parcels
post. Now isn't that giving us farm
ers some fine grandstand talk. Now
we farmers know what we want, also
know how to get 1t. But the whole
trouble lays in not being organized
and working in double harness, in
stead of single, as we are doing
now. In all the cities, they are or
organized They all have their
boards of trade, business mems
league, etc. All they have to do is
order their secretary to write up
some resolutions against parcels
post. Stating how 1t will kill off all
the towns throughout the county
The towns all deserted for the coun-
ty why the cry "Back to the soil %
The reason why so many resolu-
tions get to congress against parcels
post The editorials and the Busi-
ness Mems league of Salem are fear
full lest they lose some trade. II
they cannot sell their goods as cheap
considering quality, etc. They
should lose some of their trade
They buy at wholesale and in job
lots. They lose, l repeat if they
cannot compete with those supply
houses of Chicago and New York
when the supply houses pay the TO-
cal freight, or the purchaser, they
should lose some trade, then they
will be able to adjust their business
on better basis. Cut down one
half their unnecessary expenses, of
which we know they all have. Sup
pose we farmers run our farms on
such an expensive scale, how long,
"oh," how long would we run our
farms. A business man goes In bust
ness in Salem, first he rents a suita-
BILE store room at 800 per month
then stocks it. up in full, employs
one-half score clerks at S1.0O to $1.50
per day; that's $3.50 per day. Just
for those two items he pays 1925
per month, or $4,000 per year, for
only two items Just two of the
said merchants items, that he may
be able to oblige us farmers and la
borers.
But who pays the bills--all those
unnecessary bills as well. Does he
do 1t on small profits? No, a thou
sand times, no! But by and by,
when the goods are not all sold, and
the styles change some, the goods
are marked down to living price,
or one that is just to purchaser, as
well as to the merchant. But re-
turning to the parcels post: There
are but a very few reasons why we
have not had it some years ago.
First, the -Four Express COM
panies.' Second: Prejudice of the
local merchants Third: For want of
action in unison by the people-and
that is all.
The same argument was used
against the rural routes by the local
merchants. They said It will ruin
our business, Has 1t been ruined?
Again, rural delivery routes start
from small towns, as the large cities
all have free delivery and the rural
routes would have to travel over
miles of the city's mail routes,
which would be a total loss Of time
and money. Therefore, so much the
better for our rural routes to start
from small towns or stations, there
fore the local parcels post falls fiat.
Nobody wants 1t, but President Taft
and those others spoken Of above.
March 18th is Letter Day for the
general parcels post and two-cent
letter postage. Now everybody write
to your senators and congressman to
vote for parcels post and two-cent
postage We want 2O,OOO,OOO letters
to reach Washington next week.
SUNNYSIDE SUNBEAMS.
DON'T GET RUN DOWN