Arizona republican., 1913-11-27
FIRST XMAS
 PARCEL POST
New Postal System to Be Tried Out for First Time Against Holiday Rush Changes Favor Short Haul'

! In view of the fact that the coming 1 Christmas is the first that will be eX- perienced under the new parcel post i regulations, the Washington authorities | are viewing the situation with some 1 degree of apprehension and are reite- i rating the familitr slogan, Mail your ! parcels early, notice to this effect hay i ing been posted early in the local post office. Under the old regulation it was 1 comparatively easy to mail a parcel, for all you had to do was put on a 1-cent i stamp, or it's equivalent, for each ounce, no matter whether 1t went to i Tempe or Alaska. There was also the saving grace of the four-pOund limit. This year the limit has been extended 1 generally to eleven pounds, and to twenty pounds in the local, first and | second zones. These three also being granted special privileges in the way. i of shipment of perishable matter The ! parcel post rates are by no means 1 readily computed, varying materially as l distance it attained. Thus it becomes 1 almost necessary for the average par 1 eel mailed to go to the post office there 1 to be rated by an expert clerk. On this. ! account the post office department E fearing congestion in the Hobbies and l the third assistant postmaster general 1 has just issued a circular asking CO | operation of the people in facilitating the dispatch of holiday parcels. It has asked that parcels he taken to the post. office properly wrapped, carefully and accurately addressed and so indOrsed. when fragile. This can be done bet ter at home than in crowded lobbies. It should be understood more gener ally that fourth-class parcels no longer 1 are registered. Only first-class mail is registered now-a- days. If you want to register a parcel it will therefore be necessary to seal it securely against ] inspection, when it will be taken in the same manner as a registered letter and with the same postage, namely cents
 an ounce, with 10 cents added for reg
 istratiOn fee. If a return receipt is de-
 sired it should be plainly so marked
 upon the first-class parcel or letter.
 This regulation will very materially de- crease the registry division work which
 has been immense each holiday season
 in by-gone days.
 For added security of parcels now
 has been installed a method of insur-
 ance. When this is desired, the sender
 must be prepared to give the value of
 the contents determining whether the
 lee should be cents, insurance aSalnSt
 loss for s25 or less, or 10 cents, insur-
 ance against loss in excess of $50. In
 urance tags may be procured in ad-
 vance from the parcel post window, No.
 g, by firms or persons who expect to
 mail a large number of such parcels,
 thus saving further crowding of the
 lobby.
 Postmaster McClintock has no appre-
 hension of any special difficulty with
 the Christmas mail in the commodious
 and well-arranged quarters provided in
 the new building, but will open at least
 four parcel post windows and will in
 stall additional lobby desks and other
 facilities for handling the mail offered
 for dispatch Incoming parcels will be
 handled separately from ordinary mail
 by special force of carriers and wG-
 gons.