Evening star., 1913-11-23

two or three. IL would be possible for
these two or three delivery houses TO
so low that the individual concern could
not afford to perform his own delivery
service, and yet even at these low rates
the express companies could make bar
rels Of money. You see this already in
Boston. where the local express delivery
system has been developed"
1t is a safe prediction that the Post
master General is not going 10 let any
tender consideration for the express COM
panies stand i'm the way OF extending the
parcel post system. He feels that the
two transportation systems are fair COM
petitors. and that the only issue is to be
the survival of the httest. II the eS-
press companies can render a service 10
the people more cheaply or more eSpe-
dltously than the parcel post. Postmaster
General Burleson will be glad 10 have
them do SO. What he wants is not pri-
narlly the ACKNOWLEDGMENT OF the postal
service III the line of handling the pack
age delivery business of the people. but
rather. that they shall have their parcels
transported as cheaply. as expeditiously.
ana as effciently as that service can be
rendered. He would ask nothing in the
way of government MONOPOLY OF the
parcel carrying business except that
monopoly can be gained by rendering
the people a more efficient service than
any other agency can. Postmaster Gen.
eral Burleson SAYS:
I'VE simply extend IL Just as far as
they will support II. just as far as their
needs call for it's
burleSon outlines extension. We are
Plans for Future. sx S0'hs s,on 70 move saep step
overreaching ourselves. nor yet so slow
ly as to fail to improve the service and
extend 1t just as rapidly as conditions
will allow.
THE next step we will take" he con-
tinued. will be that of reforming the
zone rates beyond the second zone just
as we have for the first and second
zones. increasing the weight limit to
twenty pounds when we do. so that the
limit may be uniform for all the zones
and the rates made to correspond. Then,
when that improvement has taken firm
hold and proved itself in practice. We
will take the next step. again increasing
the limit and decreasing the rate, II
conditions warrant. And we will thus
| move on. step by step, until the end to
which we are aiming-a hundred pound
| limits reached. We are going to be
sure We are right at every step before
we take it, but this desire for conserva-
| tism is not going to prevent our attain
| ing the ultimate limit just as soon as
conditions warrant"
| With this then. as the ultimate object
| of the present postal administration, the
| urban consumer can feel that the day
| Is not far distant when he can write his
| declaration of independence from the ex-
| actions of the series of middlemen who
| stand between him and the rural pro-
| ducer. Then he can have his big hamper
with its several compartments for the
| accommodation of all commodities of his
| market basket-here one for ham, here
| another for some fresh meat, here one
| for several dozen eggs. and others foi
a peck of string beans, a dozen ears ol
corn, some peas jellies and preserves
| and everything else necessary for g
| weeks rations
| And what the housewife would save
| She could allow the farmer 10 per cent
more for his commodities than the coun.
| try huckster could pay him, and yet she
would reduce her grocery bill by at Least
! % per cent. Here few illustrations
/ from a page of experience of Washing
| ton man who lives i'm an apartment and
| who is part owner of farm $50 miles
away: When he was selling his apple.
l at a dollar a barrel on the farm his
| grocer was charging 10 cents a peck fol-
| some not so good: when the farm price
:! of young hens was l. cents. his grocer
| was charging %: when the farm pric,
of eggs was 81 cents, the city price was
%; a young hog butchered and cured al