Show POSTAL legislation among the features in president cleveland a message to which congress should bould give attention at an early date to la the suggested correction of abuses abuse connected with handling mall mail matter of the second class newspapers periodicals etc the improvement now asked for by the president was first recommended by the post postoffice ioe office department in 1887 but nothing has been done in the way of legislation president cleveland now takes the subject up and points out that the transmission of second class matter costs the government about eight times as much as it receives and that the deficiency in the department might toe be wholly obviated if the abuses complained of corrected by modify ing the present law so that the postal autho authorities rifles could take the required action it Is stated that it if the object ti onalle tio mail which consists chit fly of advertising sheets and trashy litera turf ture be removed from froin the secund second class claes list hat and either be made to pay the eight coots cents per pound which would he be required if the real intent of the law could be applied or be stopped all together in the ithe near future all ail legitimate newspapers and periodical magazines could be transmitted through the mails to subscribers free the report of postmaster general bissell upon which the president deot f undo his recommend atio us estimates the time whom such free transmission of legitimate papers and periodicals could be accomplished would be so close if the proposed reform were instituted that one year from the time the change is made would be sufficient V t inaugurate it the probability that a result so beneficial to the country at large could be achieved so quickly and easily in itself should ha bo sufficient to demand for the suggestion the prompt attention of the law jaw makers and when the actually demonstrated saving of money to the government la is considered it would seem folly to longer gerdean delay deay the desirable action the post postmaster mater generals report shows that in 1887 when first complaint was entered the total weight of second class clase mutter handled bandied was a little overl pounds pound in 1898 it was over pounds having more than doubled in six years these figures art are exclusive of what is known as 99 the free county mat matter terP or matter mailed free to subscribers living in the respective counties of publication the cost coat of this pounds for transportation alone independent of the cost of delivery was the p postage istace received for the same aggregated thus it will be seen that mat apart from the considerations side rations of preventing venting the tran transmission of wor worthless Gless or fraudulent pub locations and of cheapening the delivery of legitimate periodicals th government would save to in transportation alone on the basis of the busin business tso oi 01 1893 the remedy advised is not a change of rates but a classification that will proven prevent t a large list of pretended perl peri from improperly enjoying postal facilities intended only for legitimate publications amoia aboe which encroach upon the field of those these legitimate papers mr bissell designates certain serial paper covered books book chion he alleges al leges i are serial abrial only in name being give alveo n a general designation such as the fireside serie the detective series etc also house bouse organs devoted mainly to advertising advertis ine some mercantile or other establishment bogus trade publications sample ample copies and many alleged fraternal and benevolent publication which are mere advert advertising laing circulars to moot moat penpit it will appear that the president Pis a 1 vice to eliminate all these from the channels intended inte oded to bacill ate tbt transmission of news and educations educational publications publication is in a line bent facial to the country at large financially and abd otherwise regarding the postal tele telegraph raab which has been urged so often and so persistently upon epou the country cou otry the president makes no astion this probably is due to the postmaster generals Bene rala rep the result of il ti galion gation to in this line mr bissells Biesel ln predecessor strongly stron vly uly advocated this system basing his bis view upon the fact that in ILI some 0 untried the postal tele graph Is a soune bourt e of profit the beau bead of the department however takes taken a decided stand against the introduction of the system chiefly on the ground that it could be operated only at a great loss lose he suggests that the time may come when the country will be so thickly populated as its ita adopt iou but that for the present the wiser course is to wait until the full benefits are derived from the free delivery systems system the railway mail the money order or the star service taking great britain for comparison he points out that with its large population great commercial comme roial interests and distribution of cities it should furnish more favorable conditions than any presented in this country where there ire are two poat offices over miles apart yet tot in britain where a compact telegraph telee raph plant would cost about there was in 1893 a deficit it and in this country with thirty times the area of the united kingdom the cost of plant and loss lose on its operation would be immeasurably greater there is still another proposed postal change which to la being agitated but has received no mention from the executive or the postmaster general this is what to Is known as the national postage movement an organization effected effect el for the purpose of securing a one cent letter postage this movement Ino to is being urged throughout all the states A bill is promised to be presented in congress and a vigorous eff rt made to secure its passage fixing leter postage in the united states at the rate of one cent per ounce or traction thereof the financial basis for claiming the reduction is in that be letter mail now costs for handling about one fifteenth of what to is received irom from letter postage As the post office deficit is brought about largely by the handling of worthless and vicious publications according to the ibe report of the department andl and the statements iv IP the presidents message mes cage it to is claimed that business men and those engaged in legitimate correspondence should not be taxed la in their postage for this loss lose or soy any part of ita it but should receive an advantage from the prof hable handling of this class of mall mail by reducing its cost to the public jie e balt balf go bo faras lar as brat class mall mail to Is con concerns cono erne cerne 1 this claim for reform appears to have a foundation in justice and it is not unlikely that in the not ar distant future the agitation to in this reject may be fruitful of desirable results in any event postal reform legislation probably will receive careful consideration in congress before a great while |