The Ronan pioneer., 1917-11-16
POSTAGE RATE IS
BACK Sc YEARS
u. S. NOW CHARGING SAME FOR
CARRYING LETTERS AS
BEFORE 1883.
War Taxes Hits Agitation for Penny
Postage and Gives 1t Tremendous
Set Back-PostaI Rates Gradually
Reduced rs Transportation Means
Grew Better.

The immigration of the Scent
postage rate on letters takes the rate
back where it was Sc years ago. 1t
was in 1851 that the postal rate for
letters was reduced to three cents,
but only for certain distances. Not
until ten years later was the nation
wide scent rate established and it
remained in effect until 1883. Since
that year the rate has been two cel.ts
for letters, period of thirty-four
years of cheap postage.
End to "Penny POST Idea.
Before the war, the agitation for
cheaper postage had reached point
where the postoffice department was
seriously considering the 1-cent rate
for letters. The necessity for increas-
ing the rate to three cents probably
will put off 1-cent letter postage for
many years.
In 1847, the year in which the first
government postage stamps were is
sued (although postmasters in New
York, ST. Louis, Baltimore and other
cities previously had issued their own
stamps) there was no letter rate less
! than five cents, and tina. for only
|
then on zone system similar to the
parcel post rates for today and to
send a letter across the continent or
to Europe cost twenty-five cents.
Less than one hundred miles cost five
cents. In 1851 the rates were re-
duced 40 to 60 per cent and letters
we're carried from New York to San
Francisco, via Panama, for ten cents.
Tn, n
eral and was continued in effect
twenty-five years, when the develop
ment of transportation and reduced
costs made it possible to carry letters
for two cents.
Remember the Old Green Stamp?
Fathers and grandfathers of this
day can we'll remember the familiar
old Scent green stamp which carried
their letters in the '7Os and early
sos. 1t remained in service thirteen
years, from 1870 to 1888. The old
green stamp was discarded with the
change in postal rates and a new 2
cent stamp in brown took it's place.
But "the little green stamp with
George Washington's picture" was SO
generally familiar, that the change
caused confusion and j: wasn't long
before the postoffice department
; went back to the green color.
In 1890 the red color was adopted
!, for the 2-cent stamp and has been
retained in every issue except the Co.
, lumbia stamps of 1893. If you some
times wonder why the 1-cent stamp
is always green, the 2-cent stamp al
ways red and the scent stamp always
blue, the explanation is that the reg
) ulations of the Universal Postal
union require that all equivalents
conform to the one color scheme.
May Issue a New Stamp.
The new postal rate will require
the use of the present Scent purple
stamp, and aready nearly one billion
of them have been printed ready for
the new rate. Purple, however, is an
expensive color, and it is probable
the postoffice department will change
the color. Suggestions have been
made to the department for the is
suance of Scent stamp of new de-
sign to symbolic Americas partici-
patton in the war. 1t has been thir-
ty-four years since any 3-cent en-
velopes were printed, but the new
rate makes that denomination neces-
sary, and they will be issued soon.