Sept. 1, 1911 



545 



FROM PRODUCER TO CONSUMER; NOT ONLY 



A SHORT CUT BUT ONE AT 



SMALL EXPENSE. 



Just now nothing in the world can help 

 the average laboring man more than some 

 means of transportation at a low cost that 

 will enable the producer to deal direct with 

 the consumer. As an illustration: I can 

 not at present get my sujjper right from the 

 apple-tree that grows the apples, because it 

 is the wrong season.* Of course I can buy 

 some apples in the large cities at 5 to 10 cts. 

 each; but if we could trace the matter back 

 and see how much the man who grew those 

 apples received for them it would probably 

 be a revelation to us. Well, while I write 

 there are beautiful apples grown in the 

 Southern States, ripe and ready for market; 

 but in many cases a peck of them there 

 brings only about as much as a single apple 

 does Aere. When the early apples get to be 

 a drug in the market because they will not 

 keep very long, nice ones are often sold at 

 10 cts. a peck, while up here in the North 

 we pay 10 cts. for one apple. Several friends 

 in the South have kindly offered to send me 

 apples by express; but the express charges 

 would be about the same as by mail — that 

 is, for the small quantity that we could take 

 care of in our own neighborhood. I know 

 the api)les are nice, because I have had 

 samples by mail at a cost of 16 cts. per Ib.t 

 Of course we can not afford to pay 16 cts. per 

 lb. for the transj^ortation of our daily food. 



Now, here is a pai)er that comes from the 

 center of government in regard to the mat- 

 ter; and even if it is small print, and may 

 look like dry reading, I want every one of 

 you to read it again and again until you 

 understand it thoroughly, in order that you 

 may be ready to put your shoulders to the 

 wheel and help to push parcels post that is 

 now up before the i)eople. We shall get it 

 as we got postal savings banks; but we want 

 it quick, before more money is wasted by 

 giving express companies the dollars they do 

 not need, and which do not belong to them. 

 They have robbed us and defrauded us long 

 enough. May God help us in this battle. 



The sub-committee on Postoffice and Postroads 

 met to-day and took up for consideration the I>e\vis 

 bill, which provides for condemning and pui'chas- 

 ing the express companies and adding them to the 

 postal system, and establishing a complete system 

 for the iiuick transport of packages and the eatable 

 products of the farm and truck garden, etc. At 

 their last conference in Washington the represent- 

 atives of the business men of the country and of the 

 farmers" granges asked Congress to establish such 

 a system, and representatives of these interests were 

 present at the hearing before the committee to-day. 



"There are two main reasons why the express 

 companies must be added to the postal system," 

 said Mr. Lewis in his argument. " First, the express- 

 company service does not reach beyond the rail- 



* This article was dictated some time ago. 



t By the way, I suppose you .all know that I can 

 get apples cheuiier by mail from Eui'ope, Asia, and 

 Africa, and the isles of the sea; but the trouble Is, 

 they would be spoiled before they get here. Now, 

 then, let sonie big official explain to us the justice 

 of carrying p.ackages cheaper from the iittermost 

 parts of the earth than they do just now from any 

 part of the United States — yes, cheaper than we can 

 get a package from the next postoffice, only two 

 miles away. 



ways to the country or the farmers, which the post- 

 office does through the rural free delivery, which Is 

 waiting witli empty wagons to receive the express 

 packages and take them to the country stores and 

 the farmers, and carry back to the towns and the 

 cities the produce of the farms and truck-gardens 

 for the people to eat at living prices. Second, the 

 contracts of the express companies with the rail- 

 ways give them an average transportation rate of 

 three-quarters of a cent a pound; and with this rate 

 the express charges by post would be reduced from 

 two-thirds to one-half on i).arcels nanging from 5 to 

 50 pounds, and about 28 per cent on heavier weights, 

 as a conscQuence of the coordination of the express- 

 company plants with the postoffice and rural de- 

 livery, and the elimination of the express-company 

 profits, which are averaging over 50 per cent on the 

 investment. 



"The express companies are positive hindrances 

 and obstacles to the business of the country. The 

 average charge for carrying a ton of express In Ar- 

 gentina Is 86.51; and for the countries of Europe, 

 14.12. while the average express-company charge In 

 the United States Is S31.20. They charge five times 

 as much to carry a ton of express as a ton of freight 

 In other countries. Here the express companies 

 charge sixteen times as much. Of course these 

 charges simply prohibit, by half or more, the traf- 

 fic in the United States. Our average Is less than 

 one hundred pounds per aplta, while that of the 

 other countries is over two hundred pounds per 

 capita, although we have a far greater demand for 

 quick transport on account of our longer distances 

 and more extensive business. 



" We can not have an efficient parcels post. The 

 Government can not conduct it on mail railway- 

 transportation rates at over four cents a pound, in 

 competition with the express companies paying 

 but three-fourths of a cent a pound, excluding the 

 weight of equipment In both cases, which enables 

 the express corporations to pay over fifty per cent 

 In profits to themselves, although rendering no ser- 

 vice whatever to the farmers and to points off the 

 railways." 



Mr. Lewis has worked out a system of "zones" 

 based on scientific methods, from which a five- 

 pound package, for instance, can be sent 196 mlUes 

 for 11 cents, while the express companies now 

 charge 25 cents, and more for like distances: From 

 Calais, Maine, to San Francisco will cost 80 cents 

 for five pounds, and §2.42 for 50 pounds, as against 

 the express company charges of 85 cents and S7.50. 



With the rural free delivery a p.art of tlie express 

 system, an agricultural parcels post will market 

 the farmers' produce and save them the time and 

 labor of marketing their truck. Rates even lower 

 than those quoted are promised, by having the 

 rural and city carriers assemble the small consign- 

 ments of the individual shippers and utilize the 

 fast freight service on trunk lines with passenger 

 trains on the branch roads to hurry the stuff to 

 destination at the regular fast freight rates. The 

 postoffice will recoup itself by securing carload 

 rates for the assembled shipments, while the small 

 shippers get their advantage over present condi- 

 tions by having their collect-and-delivery system 

 for practically nothing. 



This system Is now in vogue In Germany: and 

 shippers, Mr. I^ewls shows, pay only double freight 

 rates, less than a tenth of the express rates here. 



The food problem, the " high cost of living." ac- 

 cording to Mr. Lewis' figures. Is largely the result 

 of the want of .a proper articulation of our trans- 

 portation with the rural sources of supply. 

 While prices are often prohibitive to the consumer, 

 crops may be rotting at the place of i)roductlon for 

 want of a real express service. 



The committee's hearings will be printed; 



"buckwheat; all about it; how to 



GROW it; DIFFERENT KINDS." 



We have so many kind words, and words 

 of commendation, in regard to our methods 

 of doing business, keeping our patrons post- 

 ed up to date, etc., that we do not have room 

 to print a tenth part of them. If fact, there 

 are so many of them compared with the 

 kicks and criticisms that the latter are some- 

 times refreshing. And, by the way, we are 



