Union
f
i/
Vol. VI—No. 15.
RALEIGH, N. C, APRIL 11, 1912.
One Dollar a Year.
More About the Parcels Post
General Council Patten Tells How Congressmen Try to Straddle the Fence on
the Parcels Post.
other express companies; and one who has been
here and knows the situation knows those are the
reasons.
The following letter written by General Council
J. H. Patten of Washington, D. C., to R. F. Duck
worth, editor of the Farmers Union News of
Union City, Ga., is given below for the Interest of
the farmers of this State. What is true of Geor
gia Congressmen is true in North Carolina and
the farmers of North Carolina should see to it
those Congressmen of this State who favor the
parcels post should not loose by it. If you have
not already found out how your representative
stands on the parcels post, do so at once and then
let him know how you stand in regard to his elec
tion. The letter of General Patton follows:
Dear Duckworth:—There can be little doubt
but that between eighty and ninety per cent of the
people of this country want a general parcels post.
Congressmen admit it, but they say, some of
them point out,—that it is the well organized ten
percent that don’t want it which can with one ar
gument or another in various ways often “dark
and devious” defeat the member of Congress wuo
comes out flat-footedly for it and actually tries
with all his might and main to secure it. Conse
quently some “statesmen” up here make the far
mer think by a long letter they are for the prop
osition and turn right around and give the mer
chant distinctly to understand that they are on his
side in the fight.
For instance. Congressmen W. S. Howard, S. A.
Roddenbery, and Dudley M. Hughes of Georgia,
ure out clean and square for a general parcel
post. So is Judge Charles R. Crisp candidate for
the nomination in the new Third District. These
men are writing farmer and merchant precisely
the same kind of letters. Now I am not saying
that other members of the Georgia delegation are
not writing their different classes of constituents
frankly and truthfully their actual sentiments and
position, but these four are being attacked in all
sorts of ways by the opponents of parcel post.
This week the Times-Recorder of Americus has
a long double column editorial jumping into Judge
Crisp for his favoring a general parcel post that
ought to be answered. There is nothing personal
in an answer. The thing involved is a question
of principle, and that principle is whether the peo
ple are longer going to permit the express com
panies, which are, really in my opinion, nothing
but parasites engaged in a business which if the
law had been properly construed by a little pin
head law clerk in the Department of Justice years
ego would not now be doing such business.
This is practically the only civilized country
that does not have a parcel post, and this country
has it to every other civilized country. The only
reasons we have not a general parcel post have
been stated by Postmaster-Generals as the Adams
Express Company, the American Express Com-
Papy. the United States Express Company, and
The re'ason why those are the reasons is because
those companies have through mail order houses
and other wholesalers and reUilers led the local
merchants to believe that parcel post would tear
down local industry and business, and build up
the business of large mail order houses. By cor
respondence, through traveling men, and other
wise the large manufacturers and wholesalers,
having enjoyed preferential express rates and
having lower rates than any local merchant can
secure, have kept dinging it into the local mer
chants ears that parcel post would ruin his busi
ness.
As a matter of fact there are no large mail or
der houses in any other civilized country and
every other civilized country has parcel post oi>er-
ated by the government through its postofflee de
partment in one form or another, and in no other
civilized country where there is parcel post has
the local merchant sulfered. As a matter of fact,
IMircel post has helped his business because he gets
the same parcel rates as does the big merchant in
the big cities and consequently there are no “big
mail order houses” in those countries having par
cel post.
Now, it is up to those who want this needed
legislation to back up the men who stand for it
The opposition is very busy in subtle and re
sourceful ways attacking them for their stand,
and unless the people who want this beneficient
legislation come to their rescue the express com
panies will continue to have thejr way. President
Barrett said recently: “If you want your Con
gressman to be what he really desires to be—your
friend, your advocate—you must prove yourself
worthy, stand by him in every conflict—for this
will give him courage, it will make him aggres
sive, it will make him determined, and it will en
courage young men, who really want to do some
thing for their fellowmen, to enter politics anc
be among those who described by the poet as
‘Large brained, cleai*-eyed, of such as he.
Shall freedom’s young apostles be’.”
It is the same old fight of special privilege
against general welfare. Every time it is propos
ed to curb the predatory practices of privilege
congressmen are threatened with defeat. Appre
hension is spread among those who will profit the
most by the change. Money is spent right and
left infiuenclng voters and stirring up every pos
sible class that can be used by the privileged in
terests to prevent the legislation.
That was true when the Interstate Commerce
act was proposed and amended from time to time
The railroads resented the interference and saw
to it that local merchants and busines men were
duly impressed with the fear that business would be
ruined. And yet when the law finally became ef
fective business was encouraged by it and local
merchants profited and by continuing to profit by
the legislation. The railroads themselves now
admit it was a good thing for them. The same
thing happened when rural free delivery was pro
posed. It was honestly contended by local busi
ness men all over the country that its establish
ment would keep the farmer out of town and their
trade would suiter, but it has not. Neither did the
establishment of postal saving bank department
hurt local bankers, practically every one of whom
were panic stricken and fought the measure just
as local merchants are now fighting parcel post.
But they are now praising the act and are per
haps its greatest friends, just as the local mer
chants ^ill be when parcel post is once- estab
lished. So, too, with regard to pure food legis
lation. Local merchants and particularly drug
gists wrote letter after letter to their members of
Congress, stating that the pure fooa law would
ruin them and threatening to defeat congressmen
if the act was passed. They honestly thought, as
a result of the impure food venders and others
profiting at the expense and health of the peo
ple, that the proposed law would keep off the mar
ket many foods and drugs which the people
wanted, but the results have not confirmed their
objections and honest fears. On the contrary,
frauds have been prevented, no legitimate business
has suffered, and honest business lias profited.
There is no question about express rate being
exorbitant. The Interstate Commerce Commis
sion and other official investigating bodies have
demonstrated that, and that the express compa
nies are an abnormal and parasitic business, that
has grown up out of misconstruction of the law,
if not illegally. Their excessive charges are one
of the causes of the high cost of living and ex
plain to some degree why it is that the farmer
gets such a small proportion of what his produce
sells for in the market where the consumer ouys
it. It is natural, of course, that those enjoying
the privilege of gathering in some twenty-five or
thirty million dollars annually in excess of what
the service justifies their taking should do every
things they can to prevent legislation that will
abolish the abuse and system by which they
gather in these millions. If the people will only
watch the opposition and meet it squarely, stand
ing by those who stand for the legislation and the
right, and carefully analyize the attacks on men
who are aggressively and with effect actually do
ing something substantial to forward that legisla
tion, the legislation will come just as the pure
food law, rural delivery, and other beneficient laws
have come, and those who fought it will become
its friends and advocates and praise the farmer,
as usual, for the good he has again wrought.
Yours for parcel post, the Union and right.
J. H. PATTEN, General Counsel.
We have'no right to rest on our arms until the
commands of our Lord and Master are literally
carried out.—J. Campbell White.