Brownsville herald. [volume] (Brownsville, Tex.) 1910-current, 1929-05-10
Once Over
THE cREAT POSTAGE STAMP SCANDAL

Complaints are being heard from all over the coun-
try that the government Is not using enough mucilage
on its postage stamps. Uncle Sam will not admit he
is skimpinE on the "stickum." but the fact remains
that stamps do not stick as they used to.
That the glue was cut during the Coolidge admin
istratIon as an economy measure has been limited at,
but Calvin denies he did anything to lower the pro-
duction costs Of two-cent stamps. He kept the postage
stamps I'D to the standard Of his predecessors in
quality and workmanship. he insists. and II the ones
the people are getting today are inferior it isn't his
fault.
Mr.. Hooyer's postmaster general is investigating,
but doesn't think anythings wrong. He Is inclined TO
think that the complaints are coming from people who
got hold of some stale stamps.
Opinions on the situation follow:
President Hooyer-I guarantee the American peo-
pe plenty Of glue on postage stamps as long as ] am
in office. The country is under heavy expense. but
1t certainly can afford mucilage enough for all.
Ex-President Coolidge-No glue was thinned at my
orders. All stamps sold under my administration
we're worth every cent a man paid for them. and there
was no attempt made 70 increase the margin OF profit
in ones and twos.
vice President Curtis-The stamps taste as good to
me as they ever did.
Secretary Mellon-I know OF no reduction IN the
quality Of postage stamps. yet It Is only fair to point
out that at present prices there Is no money In them.
has gone up. Paper costs more, paste costs
more-end labor costs more. Good postage stamp edge
cutters and scallopers get so per cent higher wages
than they used to and a master glue-dauber gets 80
per cent more with the five-day week. Then. too. We
have to pay our stamp statesmen twice what they used
to get. It's all pretty discouraging
Elmer Twitchell-An / know is that whereas I used
to have to boil an envelope ten minutes to get a stamp
off I now have to soak 1t in glue ten minutes TO put p
stamp on. / have had two-cent stamps tested BY a
chemist lately and he reported that instead Of glue
on the back OF them the government was using a
mixture OF Vienna roll polish, duck soup and tan shoe
polish. think the stamps are all right if the post
office would give you thumb tacks with them.
AMERICANA
Q-why are those men running so fast; are they
track athletes7
A-No, they're an assistant district attorney, two
detectives. and a sheriff.
Q-Are they chasing somebody's
A-No: a murder suspect Is being photographed by
the newspapers and they are afraid they won't get
into the picture.
Reporters have phone in stories from an airplane
in midair, but sustained flights being somewhat lin
tied. the big question is what will happen when an
aerial scribe gets instructions from a hard boiled ed
itor to go up after that story and don't come down
until you get it?"
ASHION NOTE
Elmer Twitchell says he wonders II the styles will
ever change so that a woman will look like a woman
once more.
Amos Q. Pipp spent yesterday at the Waldorf-As-
toria auction trying to buy, as a souvenir, a floor lamp
against which he cut open his head the night he was
thrown out for asking for a 50 room with bath.