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Show lowerWe on express i Interstate Commerce I; 3 Commission Orders r Reduction of Fully $26,000,000 a Year in the Revenues of the p1 Companies ...r; Washington, Aug 4 Reductions In m? I express rates which will cost the com- K panics fully $26,000,000 a year, ap- proximately 16 per cent of their gross ' )' revenue, were ordered by the inter- Iff'-'-' state commerce commission today to S I become effective on or before Octo- ' I ber 15, 1013. Notable reforms in prac- JK tices al6o were ordered tt' The most Important change pre- E scribed by the order is by way of & modification of the present graduated lg' scale of parcel rates. One hundred & pound rates for short distances either P' have been left unchanged or slightly IP, reduced, for longer distances they if have been lowered, for 50 pounds or !tt less all rates have been reduced. For . packages more than four pounds go- f. Ing more than 200 miles and less than ' 2000 the new express rates are gener- F alls lower than the parcel post rates, If for more than 3000 miles the rates It; aie practically the same. if The report and order of the com- Il mission prepared by Commissioner !t John Marble, are a virtual affirma- k tion of the findings of former Commis-sloner Commis-sloner Franklin K Lane, now aecrc- p tary of the interior. F By prescribing so-called block sys- ig tern, dividing the United States into 950 blocks, averaging 2500 square L miles as originally proposed by Mr. It Lane, 900 million different rates now I; published by the express companies T will be reduced to less than 650, ono and the interstate commerce commis- 'fusion 'fu-sion believes that the system points' the way to a solution of the existing ' problem of freight rates. j' ""-" The express companies had filled 0 statements indicating that the loss of revenue under the proposed rates f would tie Intolerable and argued I strenuously that the establishment of ijie parcel post had deprived them of rJBrty per cent of the revenue they r flfrlv re"ived from parcels of 1 1 pounds or less They contended that; the express business could not sur- vive the losses from both sources. i m is equivalent 10 saying com- I j ments Commissioner Marble in his report, "that inasmuch as shippers f have been Riven the convenience and I economy of the parcel post, the eX-press eX-press carriers must, on that account, be allowed to charge hicber rates than otherwise would be reasonable J This is to say, (tie commission is called on to take from the shippers of the country all the benefit they receive from the parcel post and give it to the express companies In the I form of higher rates on the remaining remain-ing business. The new system of rates is not only i a simplification of existing rate methods, meth-ods, but In the opinion of rate experts. 1 - the foundation for future prac- j tice In all rate revisions While the commission has not con- Bidered the practicabllit) of the appll- j cation of the block system lo the i maklne of freight rates, it is known ( that 'he question may be taken up j almost at any time With a standard ! freight rate once established between F blocks Instead of between points and 1 all other rates stated in percentages of the standard, the mystery of the : present complicated maze of freight It rates, in the opinion of the commission's commis-sion's experts, would be solved The basis of the classification pre- j Bcribed by the commission is that all articles of merchandise of ordinary value are to be carried at first class or ordinary merchandise rates Articles Ar-ticles of food and drink, with a few exceptions, are second class and are to be carried at 75 per cent of the lirst rates. II The rates for newspapers and per'- odicals, as well as for bread and such 1 articles for which specially low rates j now are charged, are substantially tha ij same as the present rates. |