Arizona republican., 1916-07-23
The p. O. Department


 Democratic newspapers are indulging in much ella tion what they construe be a statement by Postmaster General Burleson that his department producing MT Burleson doubtless means it to be understood that the department sup porting and more. but he has not said but has said that it would be self-supporting if was not for losses incurred by the government in handling second class mail matter Reforms suggested by him in this respect would result in making the depart ment self-supporting.
 The postmaster generals statement. however. severely punctured by Golfers Weekly, which is free from partsanship any journal in country It would be sensible says Golfers, for one to re- mark while eating his frugal lunch in a beanery that if he had invested Bethlehem Steel at the begin ming of the he could be eating at Del monico's.
 The first postmaster general declare that the department had been put a paying basis was Frank H. Hitchcock It is impossible, says Golfers to know whether when the posoffice department is paying basis, for there is no system of ac- counting to determine that. It is known that the department derives great deal of it's support from the treasury department and a great deal from the railroads
 The interstate commerce commission has required the railroads adopt systems of accounting the great postoffice department has and has had one.
 For four years the postoffce department has been attacking second class mail and the time has been extending the operations of the parcels post system as make it susceptible of further abuse. It is not long since shipped several tons of barley by parcels post from Mesa point about eighty miles south of Holbrook. the nearest railroad station. The barley shipped in fifty pound bags. It brought to the Phoenix postofce by the Arizona Eastern, it thence he Santa Fe to HOlbrOOk whence was carted to the place of destination. The mail contractor the shipper of the barley who had a store of which the barley was to be part of the stock The con tractor received price for the transportation of his barley greater by far than the government e. ceved in postage and much greater than the rail- road received for carrying the barley from Mesa Holbrook.
 This transaction certainly did not contribute to the self-support of the postoffce department But there is record in the department showing the loss in this transaction the profit transaction. Democrats of the administration and in congress have resisted all attempts at legislation to confine the parcels post system to the legitimate purposes for which it was intended to prevent such abuses of it occurred in this barley shipment.
 The postoffice department intended for vice and not to be a of It's charges for services expected to be adjusted for the benefit of the greatest number reasonable ina cost and we believe that more people are served by the transmission of second class mail than by the transmission of first-cass mail A two-oent stamp is not hardship. The average citizen does not many. It naturally happens that the weathier one is, anyhow the greater the volume of his business the greater his of first-class mail Thus this burden falls upon those who better able to bear it. Second class mail charges fall upon every sub scriber to newspaper magazine and such sub scribers found among all classes, the poor and the well to do
 The government might with propriety and much profit abolish re-cassify the thrdclass service to bring much of it under first-cass If the abolition re-classficaton should not have the eff feet of producing revenue it would have the effect of abating nuisance in the shape of circulars with which the country is flooded Much of this class of mail goes direct from the sender to the waste paper baskets of the country.