Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1927-02-25
Pass the Postal Rate Bill.

There IL a pointed. if trite. Greek
fable that deals with a country man
| and goose and some golden eggs
The Star recommends to the post Of
nee authorities that they glance back
through the few simple sentences of
the little story. and then. with The
moral that is therein pointed out fresh
IN their minds. hurry to a committee
room on Capitol Hill. For the postal
rate bill is in conference.
The postal rates on second. cha SO
mail. which ts the classified ton of the
! newspapers. nave been increa sed on a
graduated scale. going into effect in
1919 and running upward through
! 1922. The increas SEES have been retain
ed. although between 1920 and 1929
there was net loss of newspa per mail
poundage Of 1000 900 pounds. This
| despite the fact that IN the same
period the newspapers gained 33 ID
per cent in page volume.
A bill designed to relieve, in part at
| least. the inequalities and injustice in
The postal rate structure IA il affects
second class mail. and to regain for
the postal service newspa per revenue
which it has lost. Is today in confer
ence between the Senate and the
House. The House passed five sep
arate bills dealing with postal rates.
but did not reach the seat Of the trOu-
bile in the second-class mail rate struc-
ture in any one of them. The Senate
whipped the FIVE bills into one, and
added important provisions dealing
with second class mail. as well as other
Ella sses. The Post Office Department
has been hostile to the Senate meas
ure, holding that the cuts in revenue
will be too severe.
Ii does not require a diagram to
prove that there is something ra dically
wrong with a system of which the fol-
lowing example is typical; Three dol
lars are charged for sending bundle
of newspa pers from Washington to Ma
nassas, Va, by mail. The same bundle
can be sent by baggage express for so
cents. The bundle Of newspapers is
carried in the same train. on week
days the train stops at Manassas and
the bundle is delivered as baggage.
On Sundays the train does not stop,
and the bundle. az mail, is tossed off
into a field as the train speeds by. II
the railway can make a profit carry
ing bundles for so cents, the postal
service makes an exorbitant charge
when it aema nds six times this sum
for an identical service.
High postal authorities have been
astounded when informed that it costs
The Star $24 a year on paper and
postage over and above the subscrip-
ton price merely to send by mail
single daily newspaper to a subscriber
i'm California. Only per cent OF
The Stars circulation goes through
the mail to subscribers throughout
the United States, yet the loss 10 The
Star is approximately $4,000 year
on subscriptions to the Pacific Coast
L
of facts that must be weighed In de-
ter.mining the fate Of the postal rate
bill
The dissemination of information
through the public press Is of infinite
value to the people. The present pol
icy Of the Government Ia hampering
the free movement of newspapers
from one part Of the country to an
other. 1t is causing the big metropoli-
tan daily newspapers to seek other
means than the mail for transporting
their products. That they will find
such a means, and patronize it exclu-
sively when they do, unless relief from
existing conditions is afforded them,
may be confidently anticipated.
The Government has complained in
the past that the postal service loses
millions of dollars in its maintenance
of the rural free delivery routes and
that a very large proportion of the
mail delivered by these routes Is gee
ond class. There has never been any
susStStIOH, however, lndt the Iufdi
free delivery routes would be discon-
tinued If every newspaper suddenly
ceased to use the mails for delivery.
The rural free delivery routes are ex-
persive to maintain. They might be
termed a luxury il the justice and
necessity Of their maintenance were
not admitted. TO seek TO pIace upon
the newspaper publishers a greatly
iisproportionate part of the heavy ex-
pense Of maintaining these mail routes
is inequitable and unjust.
The conferees Of House and Senate
should promptly iron out the differ
ences between the two houses and re-
port an agreement upon the bill before
them. With only a week intervening
before the final adjournment of this
Congress. speed is an Impor Ia mt fac
tor in dealing with this legislation. If
Congress adjOurns without amending
the postal rate law, it will continue an
injustice upon the newspa pers and
their subscribers for another year at
least, and 1t will continue 10 lose to
the Government business which
others are finding profitable.
There is a great deal OF fighting
language" in Congress. Gene Tunney
hac 10 lnnk lilo oi6 ut