Ottumwa tri-weekly courier. [volume] (Ottumwa, Iowa) 1903-1916, 1916-08-24
Parcel Post to China
BY Frederic J. Haskin

washington, ID. G., Aug. 2l.-lf you
want to travel in China and get the
benefit of old-time local color and
quaint customs the time for your voy-
age is growing short If you delay
you may find the Chinese coolies dress
ed in the latest American made hand
me.downs, his shaggy ponies har-
messed with American harness, his
matched hut papered with the last
design in wall paper and adorned with
chromos and Autographs struck of in
U. S. A. We have just put into effect
a parcel post management with the
Chinese republic. Four hundred mil
lion people are added to the mail or
der market of the United States. Any.
thing that. can be put in eleven pound
packages can be shipped to any part
of China for twelve cents pound.
This is likely to prove an important
step for both countries in many ways.
For China it means that she is able
order market under conditions prac-
tically as favorable as those Of Ameri-
can citizens living in remote states.
For the United States it means a
chance to attack the Chinese market
problem from new angle. China is
recognized as the greatest market in
the world in many ways. The field is
practically undeveloped. The country
lis densely populated and by no means
poor. The people are not a manufac-
turing people: they are typical buy
ing nation They are just beginning
to ask for the products of western
manufa cture. 1t has long been clear
that China represents good Ameri.
can opportunity. w.
The chief drawback has been the
uncertainty of local conditions. Ameri-
cans have been slow to put their mon
ey In China. outside few big treaty
ports, because a disturbance of some
sort or another was always likely to
arise which would mean heavy loss.
But il the Chinese market can be
served by mail to any great extent,
soil and no risk necessary in China
except catalogue printed in Chinese,
there would seem to be chance for
the. enterprising exporter.
An immense number of small articles
both cheap and expensive can be or
dered and shipped outright under the
eleven pound limit system. But r. l..
Maddox superintendent of foreign
foreign mails, believes that the most
important results of the new parcel
post convention will in the long run
be indirect rather than direct. The
convention gives American goods a
chance to establish themselves in pop
ular favor in China. Every article
with the made in U. S. A. stamp that
is ordered at fair price, that is up
to catalog description and satisfactory
in quality, means strong advertise
ment for all American goods. And this
widespread advertisement among the
masses Is what the goods Of any ma.
ton needs before they can take real
hold IN a foreign country. ...,..
After any given American Arm has
rendered satisfactory service with the
class of goods that are shipped in par.
eel post packages. it has certain
right to look for mail orders of larg.
err sort that will be shipped by freight.
Nowadays everything from fish
hook to an automobile or portable
house can be bought by mail; and it
is Just under such conditions as pre-
vail in China, where the local dealer
who carries autom obiles or portable
houses in stock Is conspicuous by his
absence. that the mail order catalog is
in it's element. OF course, there was
always the possibility Of selling goods
in China by ma the order to be ship
ped by freight. But shipping cheap
trifles by freight is hardly practicable,
and it is from Just such small begin
nings that confidence and larger or
ders must grow. The new convention
gives America a chance to sell large
variety of goods to China strictly by
mail, and on such. foundation an i'm
portant commercial structure may be
built. .a. -.
1t will come as something of sur
prise to many people that the postof-
fee system in China is sufficiently ef-
icient and well organized to handle
a country wide parcel post. AS a mat
ter of fact there are considerable and