The Mankato free press. [volume] (Mankato, Blue Earth County, Minn.) 1879-1924, 1922-04-28
MANKATO FREE PRESS
Congress Must Continue To.
BackGoOd RoadsMovement
Chairman of Joint Commission On Agricul-
tural Inquiry Outlines Coming Report
To Congress

The commission believes there
should be regulation o. Inc use OF
the highways, especially with res
pect TO overlooking and maximum
loading TO be based upon the facts
so developed.
"It is already clear, that there is
a wide variation in principle and
application Of the various state and
local regulations affecting intra
state motor traffic. Studies of local
motor transportation should be ex-
banded as rapidly as possible so
that lack of uniformity in State and
Federal legislation in the future
may as far as possible be avoided"
Electric street railways, the joint
commission has found, have suffered
TO some extent from the encroach
ment of the automobile upon their
revenues. This competition" the
chairman said which is the first
competitive activity to be felt by
the street railway, has not seriously
affected the revenues except in in
diyidual cases, and will not be fatal
to their successful operation where
these competing forms OF trans
portation are subject to regulation
and control by proper regulatory
bodies"
The Parcel Post
Regarding the parcel post. the
joint commission will recommend to
congress.
That a study be made to deter
mine what branches Of the postal
service are self sustaining with the
view Of making the department af-
ter due credit for operations per
formed for the general government
self supporting, or more nearly in
accordance with the costs. This
should be done by proper readjust-
ment of charges and removal of
present rate inconsistencies. The
purpose of holding the postal serv-
ice responsive TO the needs of the
agricultural community should be
constantly kept in view.
"The commission believes" said
the chairman, that increase pos
tage rate on second class mail mat
ter, Notwithstanding reductions of
fourth class matter, has been part1-
cularly burdensome upon publica-
lions known as farm papers. per-
forming the very useful and neces
sary function of keeping their read
ers upon the farms intouch with the
most advanced methods, newest
machinery market conditions, etc.
The increased postage burden put
upon these papers is so per cent,
upon the reading matter portion,
and from 100 to 900 per cent on the
advertising portion. The service
rendered by post office in the case
of this second class mail matter
entails less expense than for parcel
post, since the publisher relieves
the post office of the work Of col
lecting. sacking, sorting, and separ-
ate weighing.
1T is our conclusion that fourth
class mail matter or parcel post has
come to constitute three fourth of
the total postal tonnage with cor
responding increase of cost to the
department. It has gone far be-
yond the oroginal proposal for local
distribution through the mails OF
small parcels in order to utilize the
empty space in rural vehicles for
the benefit of rural patrons. and 1t
is now doing largely What was for
meriy the express business Of the
country. This development Of par
eel post is apparently showing an
increased spread between revenues
and expenditures"