The Daily Ardmoreite. [volume] (Ardmore, Okla.) 1893-current, 1919-10-17
.BURLESON REPLIES TO
CRITICS FIRST TIM {
SINCE HE TOOK OFF|C[

TIE first public address he has dc,i,-
cred since entering the cabinet, Post
maslerGeneral Burleson told the Ma
tonal Hardware and American Hard
ware Manufacturers Association. in
session here, that the postal admins
tration was remarkable in develop.
ment, wonderful in administration" and
that Its standard of efficiency borders
on the miraculous"
l Speaking Of his policies, the post.
mastcr-general declared: Record has
been made Of what l stand for and
that record is not going to be changed"
Critics Of the policies were divided by
Postmaster-Genera Burleson into two
classes, these who were honest and
those who were actuated by ulterior
motives. The former he admitted
frankly included the bulk of the peo-
pie, because they have not understood
difficulties under which the postal ser.
vice has worked. The latter were said
to be those interests affected by econ
omies made for the benefit of the
people, the express companies which
suffered in the development of the
parcel post, the railroads which object.
cd 10 space payment for carrying the
nails the owners of pneumatic tube
n ems which We're abolished. and the
n Newspapers and magazines which
M fought an increase in the second-clas
postal rates.
In his first public account Of his
stewardship after nearly seven years in
office, Mr.. Burleson said the average
tenure of postmasters-g general had been
only two years. He declared that this
was explained easily by the fact that
the employees in the service come in
daily contact with the majority of
families in the nation, which gave a
fertile opportunity for criticism.
When the entire world was read
justins itself to war" he said "when
our splendid railroad system broke
down completely, is it any wonder that
there was some slight disarrangement
OF the postal service. Yet there We're
people who complained that they didn't
receive their mail with regularity and
dependabity"
Il don't blame them for complain
ing, it is human, but it was unjust
AS the only government depart
ment with a nationwide organization,
the postal service was called upon by
all other departments to aid them in
war work. Mr.. Burleson continued,
and this in spite of the fact that tens
of thousands of trained postal employees
had been called to the colors or been
put in cantonments to give soldiers
efficient mail service.
In one month, also, there were o..
OOO missed train connections"
For the treasury, Mr.. Burleson said
his department distributed tens Of
thousands of tons of liberty loan pro
paganda, sold 50 per cent of all say
ings stamps, sold and distributed new
tax stamps which included the audit.
ing of $4,000 accounts. The postal ser
vice also distributed millions of ques-
tibnnaires and acted as a recruiting
vSfryce for the war department, aided
n inn maintaining the food conservation
measure as effective and played a
leading part in administering the es-
pionage act and registering alien enc.
mics.
Exclusion Of seditous matter from
Mr.. Bureson said freely IL was de
nounced as suppressing free speech,
an autocrat and Prussian, but | moved
ON in the even tenor of my way, per
forming my duty with moderation,
exercising no arbitrary power what
ever. but enforcing the law as it was
written. 1t is a great satisfaction that
in every case where my action was
contested. the courts have upheld me,
Declaring he was not going to be
harsh the postmaster general turned
10 individual policies for which he had
been attacked. In reducing parcel
post rates and increasing the weight
limit Of parcels he said he turned a
dcfic. into a surplus, but encountered
oppoeition from the express compan'
les. which came within one vote in
the senate OF repeating the law.
He declared he met a similar stu
alton in changing the basis of pay
ment for railroad mail from weight to
space. Fifteen railroad presidents call
ed on him to ask an annual instead of
a quadrennial Weighing.
No Weasel Words for Him
Il never indulge in weasel words"
Mr. Burleson said so | told them |
was going to charge on the fairer basis
of paying by space occupied They
laughed and told me to forget it, but
/ put it over although they were pow
erful enough to strangle my depart.
ments appropriation and we operated
,Vuyirr continuing resolution for the
1fhst time in history"
NIp
IBurleson to have an inefficient incu.
Ibus retained in the service by graft
tuntil the present administration abol-
Iished them Much time was devoted
Iby Mr. Burleson to the fight on sec
Iondclass mail rates, which he laugh
Iingly said had made him the idol of
Ethe newspapers and the hero of the
magazines" He declared it had cost
lthe government 100000 above the
ipostage to carry one edition of a wei.
known weekly which averaged ST.
$500 900 in advertisements.
That deficit was paid by you" he
Hold the business men who were his
auditors, until my fight forced a
Ichange, and now | am before the In.
ltcrstate Commerce Commission trying
Ito raise still further the rates congress
fixed. which | know are too slow"
Regarding his disposition to affli-
IAton of government employees with the