Pine Bluff daily graphic., 1918-10-27
'CROSS COUNTRY MAIL
 SERVICE BY TRUCKS PROVES HUGE SUCCESS
New York to Washington Route and Philadelphia to New York in Oper-
 atiOn.

Washington, Oct. 26.-Cross-coun- try operation of mail carrying motor trucks, tried out by the postoffice de- partment on an experimental but ne- vertheless big scale, during the last year, has been great success. James II. Blakslee, fourth assistant postmas- ter general has found that on truck route between Philadelphia and Washington, cutting chiefly through territory without direct rail connec- tion and costing $500 a month to operate, has in eight months develop ed revenue of $16,O00 monthly. An other route, into Washington, where zS parcels day were moved during the first month, now shows one ton ot traffic each way each A hours.
 Seventy lines now operate over the country, ali but one east of the Mis- sisslppi, and there are visions of 2 system which will furnish $360,00O,- OOU annually in revenue for road con- |struction or other purposes.
 Why, General tershing has 5000 trucks damaged or ruined over on the other side," said MI. Blakslee tell ing of the growth of the system. Il |aon't care what condition they are in we want them all, and can fix up and put every one of them to worK. Wha's even more important, ne's got some boys over there shy hand, or an arm, or leg, and we can use them all, too, in good work at good pay, that they can do. Congress gave us $5UU,UUO to work with, and Ii we had the earnings Of the lines them serves, we could expend almost inde- tlniteiy. AS 1t IS, $9,U00,U0O will be requested by the division for next year, and l think it will be appropri- ated. People realize, What we are doing.
 "Operating at night is the most profitable, and we have but two ma chimes doing that, out of New York The typical route is about lS9 miles long, go mics out, and 9O miles back.
 Almost always the constant op- eration of the lines produces a re- turn load, the universal character o1 the mail service allowing almost any thing to be taken. The mail trucks go, come, rain, storm or anything and so the traffic develops. Rates are also pretty high, the lowest be- ing about $20 ton. That is what makes the surplus revenues.
 Of course, we'll have to have con- crete roads, but the business car produce the money to build s. them
 There are some economies in, distri'
 button of produce that are simply | IT oA6 new factor to transcontinental trans portation, and we shaA just begin finding 1t out when more extensive operation goes into effect during the next two years"
 Just /Why MT. Blakslee sees it thai
 way can be understood from just one commodity price list. Milk re
 tails now in Washington at l7 cents a quart. Milk is coming in on mai
 trucks direct to consumers for l( cents a quart. Naturally the trucks
 are belng weighed down with five
 gallon cans as consumers learn Ol
 the possibility. The trucks tap mill
 producing territories that outside the usual hauling lines, and off the raj
 arteries.
 "W hereH the roads come rom tt
 run 5000 trucks?" he asks. 'Wel
 there are 66,OUO rural mail and stal
 routes being operated in the United
 States now. sometimes 1 think ev
 eryone Of them would make trucl
 line Food is being handled 19 tim
 es on it's way to consumer. We car cut that to tive.
 Watching these figures, since De
 cember, when we started, has giveI
 me 8 new sort of inspiration. w
 snail be moving the mai4s and mails
 will include a whole unexpected va
 riety of things in new modes befOr'
 the generation finishes. Airplane'
 for thousand mile distances, train'
 for 5OV mile, and trucks for the 250 That's about the schedule