Postal Riders and Raiders

e closing hours of that session of Congress, his industry showing in his daily contact on the floor of the Senate with the members

nrose, boldly justified the increase on second-class matter, and may be

troversial promiscuousness of the Postmaster Gen

D. C., Febru

f the postal appropriation bill, H. R. 31539, now pending in the Senate that provides for an increase i

less than 4,000 pounds each issue. By the terms of the provision the privilege of carrying advertisements is for the first time extended to several classes of periodical publications enumerated in the act of March 3, 1879, namely, the period

es will be to advance the postage rate for second-class matter as a whole about 1 cent, making the second-class rate 2 cents a pound instead of 1 cent, as at present.

eased rate "will drive a majority of the popular magazines out[62] of existence, and with them the enormous volume of profitable first-class mail their advertising creates." This

of its successive issues, from January 1, 1910, to and including May 21, 1910, exclusive of cover pages, an average of

ross value of $6,688,448. Allowing a discount of 15 per cent, or $1,003,267, there would remain as a total net value of the advertising in this publication for a single year the tremendous sum of $5,685,181. The additional income from advertising resulting from the increased rates would amount in a year to $957,107, which would be much more than sufficie

arding the periodical-publishing business in general, the same gentleman says in his statement that "magazine publishers receive gross incomes as high as $6,000,000 in a single year. Dividends amounting approximately to $1,000,000 yearly have been made." Speaking of the publishers of some of the magazines joining in the protest against the proposed legislation, he says that one of them, according to his own statement, realizes a net profit of $1,000,000 annually; of another, the principal owner of two great publications, that his gross inc

6

in the Senate. In their statement the publishers claimed to have a circulation of 650,000 copies per issue and asserted that "the postal measure now before Congress increases the cost of handling Everybody's Magaz

d-class matter, on which the postage at the cent-a-pound rate was $28,983.72. As an average of one-half of the pages is devoted to advertising, the proposed incr

rculation, the gross income of Everybody's would

ptions, at $1 (

nd sales, at $1

ing per month, at $50

tal

1,450,000. Using their own statement showing a circulation of 650,000, it appears that Everybody's issues 7,800,000 single copies annually. If their total net profits are only $100

rom $500 to $600 a page. On the extremely conservative estimate that the magazine carries a monthly average of 150 advertising pages, this advance will produce an additional income of $150,000 per annum. As the proposed increase of pos

very

H. Hit

ster G

ges of reading matter, these publications succeeded in being classed as magazines and thus secured admission at the cent-a-pound rate. Among publications of this kind is one containing 140 pages, 99 per cent of which are devoted to advertisements; another containing 562 pages, 97 per cent of which are devoted to advertisements; another containing 238 pages, 93 per cent of w

y on a par with newspapers and the smaller periodicals, for the increase of rate of 3 cents a

nts in their publications offsets any loss incurred by reason of the low postage rate on second-class matter is disproved by

n all other classes of mail matter were more than swallowed up by this tremendous loss, leaving a postal deficit for the year of about $6,000,000. It is estimated

that while this increased circulation has swollen the profits of the publishers it has added correspondingly to the loss sustained by the government. It is clearly inequitable that the public in its general

very

H. Hit

ster G

ell to point out the fact that while this exceptionally low rate does prevail in that country because of the peculiar conditions there, European countries, so far as our information goes, charge a higher rate than the United States, notwithstanding their[65] much smaller areas. The rates

very

H. Hit

ster G

ound, on newspapers and peri

Ce

r local delivery, but for general distribution by parcels post in quantities, 6 ce

nth of the area of th

th of the area of the

rd of the area of the

ewspape

blicatio

d-eighty-fourth of the area

and-eighteenth of the area

periodicals are mailed by all the signatory parties at the uniform rate of

omes as high as $6,000,000 in a single year" ... "that one of them, according to his own statement, realizes a net profit of $1,000,000 annually" ... another, "the principal owner of t

companies of New York city," Mr. Hitchcock sayeth not, save as he quotes (see seventh paragraph of the Hitchcock lett

article of president, or is merely one of these "phoney" presidents who laboriously support the honors of the corporate title and vote thre

r this "President" he quotes so liberally, likewise confidently and confidingly, is a real, live-wire president, active in the management of his periodical, and, therefore, fully informed as to its business, expenditures

t like a promotion circular, like an "annual statement" which corporations and companies as well as individuals print and distribute to call

o, also, has the Steel Corporation, when it wished its employes to chip in a few millions for "a personal interest." Our friend, "Bet-You-a-Million-Gates," used it to advantage in

s to his personality, individuality and general business activity in and knowledge of, his own publication busin

larger periodical enterprises. Mr. Hitchcock has much to say about gross receipts, gross revenues, and other gross. I shall present my estimate

gures, mostly estimates, are those of a man with experience only a

s per month, and retailing at 15 cents per copy, is less than $750,000. Such periodicals realize about 12? cents each for subscribed copies and 8 cents net for copies delivered in bulk to newsdealers and agencies. The first item of expense the publisher incurs, therefore, is in the iss

r largest manufacturing printers, pointed out the facts to me. His varied business interests are such that he must necessarily buy at the lowest market cost, must know to the fr

ade my landing somewhat abrupt, in order to tell me some things about periodical

s the one stated: that readers of periodicals get, in net mechanic

riend pointed out, realize about six-tenths of one cent a copy-a little less, if they do cartage for any considerable part of their local deliveries or pay rail haulage charges on outside deliveries. Of course, my tutor is speaking of news agents and carrier deliveries. On their regular subscribed issues publishers realize a little more. But

timber, "of stumpage," from the spruce forests of the north and farther north, the scattered linn or basswood of the east and southeast, and of the soft maple and cottonwood of the southeast and south. Then he told me of the prices paid the "lumber

we used to call it), by the most modern methods, the linotype and the monotype machines. Then he talked of ink and presswork costs, of color work, folding, stitching and covering or binding; of the cost of wrapping, addressing, cartage, rail haulage and distribution. The result of the expert's sh

6

or a newspaper, magazine or other periodical is often but a third, sometimes

ur magazine of 650,000 monthly issue and Postma

0,000 a year is ill advised. Let us see what must be charged off

Next comes the cost of sacking his subscribed circulation and of bundling and wrapping, then of cartage to mail trains. The prominent periodical publisher not only delivers his subscribed list sacked to the mail car, but he routes the larger portion of it, the railway mail clerks having nothing to do with it save to dump it off at the designated stations. Then he must meet the carriage and delivery cost, about 1 cent a pound, or $20.00 a ton. All these I consider fla

it-pays directly to the publisher. The news stand buyer pays 15 cents a copy, but the publisher, after paying newsdealer and agency commissions[70] on the latter sales, realizes but 8 cents per copy. Here let us see how this publisher's circulation-cost and receipts figure out. Six hundred and fifty thousand monthly

per month, or 6,600,000 copies a year), he

month or 1,800,000 a year),

eipts

5,000, thus standing a net loss of $1,635,000 on his mechanical output-no, on his literary and educational output. And, mark you, that $705,000 Mr. Hitchcock must, necessari

the profound profundity of his knowledge of periodical publishing, figures that the advertising receipts are clear profit to the publisher. True, he does, in one of his urgent let

lk-about the cost of soliciting and printing advertising matter by any of our high-class per

ages. People read the "ads" in these periodicals. They are largely attracted to them by their artistic arrangement, typographically and in design. It takes brains to make that arrangement, brains of finer fiber or better trained than the cold storage variety. The service of such brains costs money. Who pays it? The publisher. A

her thought: They are led to read them because of the artistic letterpress, the designing, the attractive

y raising; of the latest achievements of Luther Burbank, or some other wizard in the domain of pomology; of kitchen and flower gardening; of how to cut down our gas bills; to make the ton of coal deliver more "duty"-more thermic B. T. U.'s-of the best new books and of bargain reprint editions of the best old ones; of where to get a cheap home, cheap acres

stmaster General Hitchcock appears to have ignored the fact I have already pointed out-ignored the fact that the publisher's hea

splay for this line of goods." Not at all. The publisher must go after him and, not infrequently, go after him numerous times before he lands his $500.00 or $5,000.00 contract or order. To secure such advertisements the publisher employs the most skilled advertising solicitors within reach of his bank balance. Such men, if carried on his regular payroll, are among the "high-salaried" human units which make up the operating

NY UNDE

s on the point under consideration. I wish to appropriate for use here some very manifestly truthful state

statement is on file in the Department of Commerce and Labor and is easily accessible to the Postmaster General if he desires to know a little something of what the publishers know about their own business. The publishers of th

thly periodicals of this country. Yet these sworn statements show that Mr. Hitchcock's proposed increase of 3 ce

not really his, but it looks like him-for an increase on second-class matter would, if made operative, would so seriously impair the financial strength of five such strong periodicals as those named, what, it is the part both of

xemptions from his four-cent rate and the stronger periodical publications, five of which are before him in sworn statement. If he would give, I say, these middle-class publishers-we may so call them for the comparison in hand, though their publishe

d still provide, by exemptions or otherwise, to protect the "fence-building" country newspapers,-indeed newspapers in general, now that I read him again. Likewise he protects the farm,

7

end, the washerwoman, would put it, about the United States Postoffice Department, its management and its methods. I shall pro

e profits is shown by the fact that although these magazines received in 1909, $2,463,940.39 for advertising,

so good that I believe I will repri

cite a recent increase of advertising rates of a certain magazine, and to consider, and

tion, he takes the number of lines actually printed in this weekly's richest advertising season, ignoring the fact that in the summer this periodical is sometimes publ

uming that this increased income is all profit. This error arises from the Postmaster General's total ignorance of the publishing business in general; and in particular, of the

te brought the periodical and observes with an air of finality that t

cribers. Furthermore, the Postmaster General takes gross advertising income as net profit, apparently thinking that advertising flows into periodical offices without the asking, where, as a matter of fact, it is necessary to spend enormous sums for high-priced men to solicit advertising, for other men to lay out plans and make des

grocer has to charge more for two pounds of tea than for one pound. But what possible relation has this to the fact that postage rates have remained stationary? The postoffice gives no more service than it did before magazine circulations an

take immediate steps to collect. "Job Jobson" in three little pamphlets tells more than either Mr. Hitchcock or myself will ev

b Jobson's three booklets are toweringly important inasmuch as they were written by Wilmer Atkinson, publisher of the Farm

second-class mail rate question that both Mr. Hitchcock and myself wou

ut from the one I have I desire to quote a couple of paragraphs which I hope it will do Mr

at neither a law on the statute books, much less arbitrary power outside the law, should ever be invoked to curtail the liberty and independence o

r rich, however humble, to brighten and to bless, is a great and beneficent work, worthy of a

e a couple more paragraphs. They have been published generally throughout the country and

nd performing their functions. They obtain their circulation by their direct appeal to the popular thought. Their circulati

pression-just at a time when opinion is concerning itself most actively and effectively with the deepest problems of our politics and our social life. To make