The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1914-12-14
P.O. DEPART MEN I SHOWS SURPLUS.
 BURLESON SAYS


 zation by Benjamin Franklin, the post 1 office department is on a self-sustain- I ing basis. Postmaster General Burle- son submitted to President Wilson to- day his annual report. It records enormous growth in the departments business because of the parcels post and postal savings bank divisions and recommends a program of postal leg islation to increase the scope of the departments activities.
 MT. Burleson features his report with an estimate that a surplus of $S,569, 545, the second of his adminis- tration, will be shown for the fiscal year of 1914 when all claims and charges have been met. On that showing he bases his declaration that the department .thas been securely placed upon a self-sustaining basis's The legislative program recom- mended is as follows as to it's most important features:
 Early action toward government ownership of telegraph and telephone lines and immediate taking over oS these systems in Hawaii, Alaska and Porto Rico. Transfer of the Alaska cable from war to postoffice depart ment control1.
 Substitution of contract s.star route, system for salaried rural car rier service to eliminate $40, ,000, ,000 annual loss on rural delivery. 4Postoffice cooperation with state governments in road building where improvements insure better postal service.
 able at postal banks from $500 to $2,-# 1000, interest payments to be limited \ to $1s000 Removal Of monthly de-I posit limit restriction.
 Aerial mail service, where topogra- phy warrants, and extension of motor truck and automobile service in view Of recent successful experiments
 Passage by Senate of pending bill providing space basis of compensationl for railroads on mail carried instead of weight basis.
 l Pending change in rural J delivery system, conn putation Of carriers sal- aries on basis Of services performed, dependent on bulk of mail carried. to
 Readjustment of postnasters' sal aries on basis of changes in business | handled due to parcel post develop ment
 Ipublicatons other than newspapers. | Issued once a week from one to two cents aapound.
 Granting the department legal jur-s l isdiction over selection of sites and designs for postal buildings.
 Of the parcel post during the last year the report says:
 tsRapid growth of the parcel dpost l vastly increased postal business dur ing the year. The departments field 6 nal rate: it is still expanding. Not withstanding the decreases of parcel post rates authorized January I, 1914, Eeconontes of administration have kept expense within the revenues. !"
 or the departments financial con- dition the report says:
 I 'sThe postal revenues for 1914 1 amounted to $287,934. .565.67, an in- Icrease over the preceding year of Is1fghtIy less than per cent, as com  of slightly more than eight per cent. T for .1918 The audited expenditures for the year amounted to $2S3, 3,543.- 1 z69-16, and the adjusted losses due to fire, burglary, etc. to $14,333.46. The l excess Of audited revenues over audit ed expenses and losses is. therefore I $4,376, ,46S-o5.
 .'This audited surplus does not, however, represent the actual finan-s cia1 results for the year. It involves lcompatison of amounts that are not I properly comparable. It does not in-s iclude obligations which were incurred but not paid within the year, while l it does include some payments on ac-. tcount of obligations incurred in prior lyears''
 Reviewing his recommendations for government ownership of te1e- graph and telephone lines. MT, BurIe- son says:
 'The postmaster general renews the recommendation embodied in his last annual report that Congress seriously consider the question of declaring a. government monopoly over all utili- ties for the public transmission of in ltel1igence and that steps be taken as soon as practicable to incorporate in- to postal establishments the te1e- graph and telephone systems of the
 t'In that report reference was made to the anomalous condition in this kcountry under which the telegraph and telephone utilities, being vehicles for the public transmission of intelH- lgence, infringe upon a function re- served by the constitution of the na- tionaI government. They inherently
 as well as constitutionaIly belong to | the postal service The firm convic- ton of the department is here reiter- ated that telegraph and telephone ser-z vice is inevitably monopolistic and, l when operated under private control
 does not render the maximum of pub lie service at the minimum cost to the whole people.
 "It is an interesting fact that, Iwhereasa policies of government have been advocated and some adopted the constitutionality of which have
 been seriously questioned the prin- Iciple of government ownership and
 control of the telegraph and telephone
 finds its greatest strength in. the con-. stitudon- This opinion has been shar4 ed by practically all postmaster gen 4f SA e-1S OAE Et1ASS Ot11teO states, WnOs nave
 held that the welfare and happiness of the nation depend upon the fullest utilization of these agencies by the : people, which can only be accomplish ed through government ownership.
 It is also recommended that the telegraph and telephone facilities of
 Alaska Porto Rico, and the Hawaiian
 Islands be at once taken over and operated by the post office depart
 ment. This recomm endation is based
 on an exhaustive investigation which
 disclosed that the conditions in these 1 territories are generality such as to = favor the change. A large part of the