Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1915-12-27
Hearing from the Farmers.

Hearing from the Farmers.
Efficiency must always remain the
controlling consideration" says POST
master General Burleson in his annual
report II would be interesting 10 read
the comments Of the thousands of
farmers who have suffered from i'm
pairment of rural mail service. the
other thousands Of residents of from
tier communities TO which star route
service has been diminished or cut off
entirely. an the hundreds of thous-
ands of residents of frontier communi-
ties to which star route service has
been diminished or cut off entirely. and
the hundreds of thousands Of city bus
mess men who find their mail handled
with less rapidity than in previous ad
ministrations.
The Somerset pa Standard recent
Is said:
Complaints continually being sent TO
Washington tell Of impairment of the
rural mail service because OF changes
made in recent months by an admins
tration whose head and chief Subordi-
nate officers had no practical knoW!-
edge of the service prior 70 their APP
pointment 10 their present positions.
Failure TO understand rural conditions
and the needs of the farmers is the
only explanation that can be made. for
II is incomprehensible that the Depart
Tr51JAle e
rural mail service.
= few days ago. the master Of the
State Grange IN Pennsylvania told Of
the manner in which the rural deliv-
cry service had deteriorated in this
state. Now comes d congressman from
Minnesota with plain declaration OF
facts showing that the Department has
made changes OF the most incredible
kind even including the establishment
Of route on roads which have been
abandoned Is or 20 years and which are
utterly impossible in any kind of wea-
Their. The only plausible explanation
of this latter action is that IN changing
the route from one road TO another.
the Department merely consulted a
map ard did not have the proposed
change inspected by some one familiar
with the neighborhood.
Congressman Sidney Anderson. Of
the First Congressional district of Min
nesota, says. that in most of the coun
ties of his district there has been an
elimination of one or two routes. parts
of the routes eliminated being attach
ed 70 others. This policy has added
miles to practically all the routes in
now being as much as 80 miles long.
Farmers in all these counties say
it will be practically impossible for the
carriers to cover their routes during
the winter months, especially if We
have a heavy snow" says Mr.. Ander-
son. who has been in close touch with
the farming counties. There has been
considerable curtailment Of service a
great deal of added inconvenience, and
in many instances it will be impossible
TO serve the routes as established"
Mr.. Anderson points out one injuri-
Gus effect of these changes which was
also mentioned by John a. McSparran.
Master of the Pennsylvania State
Grange He says: These wholesale
changes result in changing the ad-
dresses of thousands of farmers and
practically nullify the use Of the parcel
post in a local way. as only a COM
paratively small proportion of the
farmers are now served from their
trading town."
Theoretically. the only persons in
iured by these changes are the farm
ers. but in practice the local merchants
and all other persons having dealings
with the farmers are injured in no less
degree. Says Mr.. Anderson: THE
changes practically render valueless
the mailing lists of every merchant
and will result in very great confusion
in the handling of the local mails for
some time to come"
The Maine Grange has just spoken
as body against the confusion and
impairment Of rural service. Changes
that compel a farmer to get mail from
one town while he transacts his local
business in another are multiplying
and adding to the confusion. If he has
produce to send to market by parcel
post, he certainly wants it to go to the
town where he does his local trading.
A change in routes which makes him
a patron of some other postoffice. as
stated by Mr.. Anderson, renders the
service so valueless that he might as
we'll go after his mail as have it deliv-