The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1915-04-08
The Mail Order Subsidy


1t is interesting to note that the
principal finding of the Bristow joint
committee in its parcel post investiga-
ton is just what the retailer has always
claimed-that the parcel post is great
boon to the big mail order houses in
promoting their business and increasing
their profit. but failure in promoting
the direct supply of farm produce to
consumers.
While the claimed purpose of the
parcel post system is to benefit the
farmer, it is well known that the
farmer did not exhibit the interest in
securing the passage of the bill that the
mail order houses did. The fact that
one half of the parcel post matter
carried originates in Chicago and New
York is sufficient proof that the farmer
is not particularly interested in the
system and is not making use of it.
PROFESSIONALLY the farmer has
secured the delivery of much mer-
merchandise at lower costs than
formerly, but it has been att the
expense of other taxpayers unless the
parcel post system is supporting
The BIistow committee does not state
positively that the system is costing
more money than it produces, but some
of the findings and recomm -ndations
show the opinion of the commendations
OF the committee. The report states
that it is impossible to determine the
cost OF parcel post service or the revenue
that is derived from it,. Again, the
committee recommends "a revision of
the rates and weights of third and
fourth class matter, so as to protect
the revenues Of the department. Thus
it appears that the committee is con-
WINGED that the parcel post system, as
now operated, is drain upon the re-
sources Of the post office department.
No well-informed man will question
! for a moment the statement that the
mail order houses have effected enor-
nous savings by using the parcel post;
but the price of mail order merchandise
has not been reduced on this account,
SO that this saving amounts practically
to a subsidy that is unwarranted by the
benefits derived by the country at large.
| Thus the subsidy is a discrimination,
and there is no reason why the Govern
ment should discriminate against the
distributors of 80 per cent. of the mer-
chandise sold in this country in favor of
corporations that distribute 10 per cent.
Hope that the Bristow committee
favors a revision of the parcel post
system to a more favorable basis tor
the retailer may be taken from the
following recommended tions-"Th re-
adjustment of rates to the different
zones so that the sum of the local rates
| will not be less than the through rate,
in order that the reshipment OF parcels
at an intermediate point between the
post Office of origin and that of final
ucSllAdlIOu Sld4l IO lOIIRSI DG pEOllLd-
ble."
However. the retailer would obtain
more benefit, and relief, if catalogs
were not carried by parcel post, or if it
was required that parcel post ship
ments should originate at the post Office
in the city from which the sender dis
tributes his merchandise. For instance:
If mail order houses wish to dlstribut e
large number of catalogs in the state
of Georgia, shipment may be made by
freight to Atlanta, and individual copies
may be sent by parcel post from that
point, effecting large saving as COM
pared with the cost of mailing the same
catalogs by parcel post from the
Chicago office.
1t is carefully estimated that one
mail order firm has saved more than
81, 900. 900 year by shipping its eata-