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TABLE OF CONTENTS.

LETTER TRANSMITTING REPORT TO COMMITTEE

REPLIES OF MEMBERS OF COMMITTEE..

INTRODUCTION..

CHAPTER I.-Explanation of construction and draft of a bill directing the Postmaster General to readjust the compensation of steam railroad companies for the transportation of mail..

Construction of rates.....

Standardization desirable....

Relation of mail to passenger service..
Terminal charges...

Line rates..

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Comments on provisions of bill.

CHAPTER II.-Historical review of previous investigations of the subject of

railway mail pay and résumé of testimony and arguments submitted in this

inquiry...

Investigations by former commissions..

The Hubbard Commission (1878)..

Elmer-Thompson-Slater Commission (1883).

Wolcott-Loud Commission (1901).

Hitchcock plan (1911)..

Expense of postal investigations..

Progress of the work of this joint committee..

Department plan modified...

Dead space...

Allowance for capital charges.

Short-line railroads (Talbott bill).

Buckland plan...........

Briefs.....

Brief submitted by railroads (June 26, 1913).
Reports of M. O. Lorenz and R. H. Turner.

Mr. Lorenz's report..

Mr. Turner's report..

Post Office Department's brief (Jan. 16, 1914).

Executive sessions (Jan. 20 and Feb. 2 and 3, 1914).

Department's third plan-A tentative draft of suggestions for recommen

dation for legislation and regulation of railroad mail service and com

pensation therefor (Feb. 12, 1914).

Hearings reopened....

Railroads' reply brief (Feb. 26, 1914).

Railroad companies oppose the Post Office Department's third suggested
plan (Mar. 16, 1914)...

(2) Authorizations of car service.

Post Office Department's reply to the railroads (Mar. 24, 1914).

Final hearings..

(1) Express..

(3) Dead space....

(4) Overpay or underpay.

Car-mileage estimates....

Passenger, Pullman, express, and mail revenue.....

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Page.

CHAPTER III.-The weight basis, its defects-The space basis.

59-64

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Advantages of space basis..

64

CHAPTER IV-The department's claim that railroads are overpaid for car

rying mail-Its four suggested plans.

65-84

Original Hitchcock plan...

65-70

Tentative draft of proposed law for regulation of railway mail pay..

65-68

Capital charges disregarded..

68

Discussion of plan invited..

68, 69

Erroneous treatment of mail space..

69, 70

Department submits a second plan..

70-73

Tentative draft of proposed law for regulation of railway mail pay.... Department submits a third plan..

70-72

73-77

A tentative draft of suggestions for recommendation for legislation and regulation of railroad mail service and compensation therefor. Fourth departmental plan (H. R. 17042, Union Calendar No. 243).. Departmental rates confiscatory.

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CHAPTER V.-What is a reasonable and just rate rate for transporting mail by

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CHAPTER VI. Comparison of mail and express earnings.

Comparative earnings on a space basis.

2. Comparative earnings on a ton-mile basis...

3. Comparison of rates per 100 pounds and per packages of lower
weight.....

4. Comparison on basis of increase in earnings..

CHAPTER VII.--Comparison of earnings from passenger and mail traffic..

Mail traffic-passenger traffic compared.....

CHAPTER VIII.-Comparisons with the Pullman service.

CHAPTER IX.-Analysis of the bill prepared by the joint committee.

Round-trip authorizations provided for..

Relatively higher rate for short hauls..

Explanation of rates..........

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90-94

91-94

91, 92

92

92-93

94

95-98

95-97

97, 98 99

LETTER OF TRANSMITTAL.

WASHINGTON, August 1, 1914.

To the Joint Committee on Postage on Second-class Mail Matter and Compensation for the Transportation of Mail:

GENTLEMEN: On May 28, 1914, our committee adopted the following resolution:

Resolved, That the chairman be authorized by the joint committee to prepare the report of the joint committee.

The extreme technicality of the subject, the desirability of making a presentation clear to the layman and at the same time convincing to the statistician and specialist, has made the task a most difficult one. If I have seemed slow in complying with your request, it has been because of my earnest desire that when our report should be presented to Congress it shall contain an analysis of the vast amount of data that has been accumulated, and shall present concisely, yet comprehensively, the plan we have agreed upon and the facts and arguments which led to our conclusions.

I feel that, under all the circumstances and difficulties that we have had to contend with, the work of our committee has been remarkably expeditious and that we have well performed the duties. placed upon us by Congress as far as "compensation for the transportation of mail" is concerned.

The actual work of our committee began in January, 1913, although in September preceding, immediately after the creation of our joint committee, I personally arranged for the collection of some of the information for the use of the committee. Our official investigation has, therefore, covered a period of nineteen months, which doubtless seems long to those unacquainted with our work, and was perhaps six months longer than the members of the committee be

it would take to complete the task.

Our work has been made much more difficult than I anticipated it would be, because of the very remarkable lack of definite and reliable statistics in the Post Office Department and in railroad offices regarding railway mail pay questions. As you are well aware, most of the statistics submitted by the department were in the nature of estimates, some of which were changed a number of times. We have not, therefore, had the assistance we had a right to expect from an administrative branch of the Government presumed to be under the charge of specialists.

Moreover, when this committee began its work it had before it a plan proposed by the Post Office Department, and recommended as 'scientific and business'ike." The department subsequently modified its plan in many particulars and then entirely abandoned it, substituting a new plan in February of this year. Its third plan was also

discarded, or greatly modified, in its approval of H. R. 17042, introduced in the House of Representatives on June 5, 1914, and, if I am correctly informed, it has again changed its position by approving an increase in the rates contained in said H. R. 17042. While the department has appropriated in its plan presented in February, and still further absorbed in H. R. 17042 some of the vital bases which our committee had worked out, yet, if H. R. 17042 should be enacted into law some of the requirements are so pernicious as to destroy the benefits which I believe would result from the adoption of our plan. The vacillating attitude of the department itself, as well as the unreliable departmental and railroad statistics, is largely responsible for the unexpected amount of time we have been obliged to devote to our study of this subject. On May 14, 1913, this committee considered its hearings concluded, but at the request of the Second Assistant Postmaster General granted the department permission to file a brief, which brief the committee expected to receive not later than the first of June, 1913. The brief was not filed, however, until more than six months later, to-wit, January 21, 1914.

On March 7, 1913, immediately after the inauguration of the present administration, I addressed a letter to the new Postmaster General, Hon. A. S. Burleson, directing his attention to the original and modified plans for railway mail pay advocated by his predecessor, and asked him to inform this committee whether he indorsed either of those plans; and, if so, which. Mr. Burleson replied immediately that he would give the subject prompt attention. More than 11 months elapsed, however, before I received Mr. Burleson's letter of February 12, 1914, informing the committee that the department had changed its attitude and submitting a tentative draft of a new plan.

The issues presented and the change of attitude of the department made it desirable to reopen the hearings, and this the committee did, beginning February 26, 1914, and closing April 3, 1914.

It is generally agreed among students of the subject that this committee has gathered the most extensive data ever brought together on the subject of railway mail pay, same occupying more than 1,650 printed pages, as presented in our preliminary report of January 24, 1913, and our printed hearings, commencing on January 28, 1913, and concluded on April 3, 1914, and which as printed from time to time were distributed to Members of Congress.

While I recognized the desirability of an expeditious conclusion of our work, I believed it more important that we should do our work thoroughly than that we should conclude it quickly. I should regret extremely and be deeply humiliated if our investigation had resulted, as did that of the Post Office Department, in our changing our attitude three times and advocating four radically different measures. We should certainly forfeit all claim to the confidence of Congress if we presented such a record of vacillation as did the department. If, in our anxiety to be expeditious, we had repudiated three plans we had evolved, upon what theory could we expect Congress to believe that we would for any considerable length of time, continue to advocate any new plan we might recommend?

I have been working continuously with such assistance as was available in the formulation of this report. To segregate the vast amount of information, to weigh the value of the various estimates of

the department, to distinguish between the statistics applicable to its various suggested plans, and to determine just what weights the various estimates and statistics have in relation to the plan this committee has worked out, is no small task.

I present herewith a report I have prepared in compliance with the resolution quoted at the beginning of this letter, and if the same meets with your approval, will you kindly so indicate, or express your dissent from any portions to which you do not subscribe or in which you do not wish to participate.

Yours very truly,

JONATHAN BOURNE, Jr.,

Chairman.

REPLIES OF MEMBERS OF COMMITTEE.

Hon. JONATHAN BOURNE, Jr.,

DOVER, DEL., August 19, 1914.

Washington, D. C.

MY DEAR SENATOR: I am in receipt of your favor of the 15th, also page proof of the report on the railway mail pay, which I have carefully read, and particularly chapters eleven and twelve, as requested, all of which meets with my hearty approval, and you are duly authorized by me to sign my name to the report in full.

With kind personal regards and best wishes, I remain,

Very truly, yours,

H. A. RICHARDSON.

The chairman of the commission in preparing the report correctly states the finding of facts on the subject of railway mail pay, and the bill submitted in the report meets the approval of the commission. We believe, however, that the chairman is unfortunate in the reflection he makes on the Post Office Department and the Postmaster General, and from these criticisms we respectfully dissent.

As the investigation progressed nearly every one connected with it changed his views, and no one should be criticised for doing so. The country has the benefit of the most exhaustive, thorough, and conclusive investigation that has ever been made on the subject of railway mail pay, and full credit should be given to all who have contributed to this result.

The chairman takes decided stand with reference to the Government ownership of various public utilities. That discussion, excepting as to the ownership of railway post-office cars, is not within the scope of the work of the commission. The ownership of public utilities was not investigated by the commission, and it did not make any findings in regard to it. We, therefore, disclaim any responsibility for the position taken by the chairman on that subject.

J. H. BANKHEAD.
JAMES T. LLOYD.
W. E. TUTTLE, Jr.

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