Arizona republican., 1915-04-08
PARCEL POST
 1 COMPENSATION
Controversy Between Rail- roads and Department Over Rates; Mr. Burle- son States His Side of the Argument

Newspapers, especially in the east, have been paying a great deal of at tention to the controversy going on be- tween Postmaster General BurlesOn and the so-called committee on railway mail pay in regard to the question of proper compensation to the railroads for carrying parcel post matter
 The railroads are paid at the present time according tothe weight of the mail carried. The postOffice apprOpri- ation bill which failed during the clos ing hours of congress appropriated money for what is known as the | Space" plan advocated by the post | master general that is to pay the rail- roads according to the amount of Space occupied for mail purposes rather than according to the weight of said mail The railway committee asserted over and over that this would be totally un- just to the railroads and that on ac- count of the rapid increase in parcel post matter-mail being weighed once 1 in four years-the railroads were get ting decidedly the worst of 1t, even under the weight system" and that
 
 bad matter worse.
 The paramount question:" the post ! master general states "is whether a few large railroads will be able to pre- vent legislation placing railroad mail | pay upon a basis which will enable the department to conduct the service in l a business-like and economical way ] for the public and at the same time pay every railroad company fully for all the services which it renders, and ] further, whether the rates in the pro- l posed legislation are not amply ade- | quate. if not indeed too high, for the i service rendered. Upon this point the public should bear in mind this fact l among others bearing on the subject which must have consideration and which are ignored by the railroad con- mittee, that the railroads are actually 1 carving for the express companies | parcel matter which subsequently, is 1 deposited in the mails at rates about 1 one half of what the postoffice depart i ment is paying the railroads for trans l porting just such ma tier over the same routes. For example the revenue re- | ceived by the railroads for 100 pornds of this matter carried for express conI- panies and for loo pounds of like mat | ter carried for the poStOffice 1tnart- ment is as follows: From New York. N. Y. to Albuquerque. New Mexico. s3 40 from express companies and s647 from the department: from New York. l N. Y. to Bay City Michigan. s1.22 from express companieS and $1.99 from | the department; from New York, N Y., | to Birmingham. Alabama. s1.72 from express companies and s3.37 from the ! department: from New York. N Y. to Denver Colorado. S2S5 from express companies and s594 from the depart ment: from New York. N. r., to Fort l Worth, Texas. s2.60 from express com panies and s5.13 from the department from New York. N. Y, to Kansas City. i Missouri. s1.75 from express companies 1 and $3.S0 from the department from New York. N. Y. to Raleigh, N. C.. s1.05 from express companies and $1.51 from the department: from New York. N. Y.. to Saint Louis. Mo. 130 from express companies and s2.97 from the department: from New York. N Y. to l Spokane, Washington, s4.56 from ex- press companies and ss.26 from the de- pariment: and from New York. N. Y.. to Cincinnati. Ohio s1O7 from the ex- press companies and $209 from the de- partment
 ''As the cost of transportation enters l largely into the rate the postoffice de- partmcnt must give the public for par eel post mail the above figures con- clusivoly demonstrate the vital import ance to the department and the public of obtaining an equitable solution of the railway mail pay question.
 "Anl yet in the face of this the chair man of this so-called committee makes the positive statement that the post master general is permitting the gov ernment of the United States to rob the
 railroa Is Of at least half of what is due them for carrying parcel post. The
 truth is that up to the end of the fiscal
 year the railroads will have received
 nearly four and haf million dollars
 for this service in addition to their reg
 ular pay, and I have recommended to congress legislation which when passed
 will allow them nearly one million dol
 lars more for this special service. These
 allowances upon the whole have been
 adequate and are based in more than h?lf the country upon the actual weight
 of the mails carried They include
 special allowances covering the accre-
 tions of parcel mail following the ord
 CTS of August 15. 1913. and January 1
 1914. reducing parcel postage and in-
 creasing the weight limits. In fact. on 1 some routes. where the allowances were
 based upon estimated weights. subse.
 quent weighings showed that the orig
 inal sums granted were more than the
 railroads were entitled to. Other routes
 our estimates showed, were carrying
 greater increase in weight than con-
 gress had authorized us to pay for;
 but upon the whole the allowance,
 were adequate"