SATURDAY, JUNE 16, 1906. UNIVERSAL PENNY POSTAGE.

Evening Post, Volume LXXI, Issue 142, 16 June 1906, Page 4

SATURDAY, JUNE 16, 1906. UNIVERSAL PENNY POSTAGE.

The first advocate of international, or as he termed if, "ocean" penny postage, was, we believe, the literary blacksmith, Elihu Burritt, best known by his exceptional "gift of tongues." He was a leading member of the Peace Society, andi inferred that the greater the freedom of international commerce and facility of intercommunication the bettfr understanding would exist beUtveen the peoples of the earth. The middle point of the nineteenth century was a period of almost general peace ; the first World's Industrial Exhibition was in view, internationalism was in the air, and the time was apparently favourable for the cruEade. More than fifty years have passed and the vision is unfulfilled ; but it is no longer out6ide of practical politics. It is, to all appearance, wilfliin measurable distance, and New Zealand may fairly claim a considerable share of credit V? the progress . that has been made. It was therefore fitting that at the recent Postal Conference iQie resolution in favour of universal penny postage should have been submitted by our Poetinaster-General, Sir Joseph Ward, for he, more than an/ other man, could speak from actual experience of the practical effects of the proposed reform We have already published a brief summary of the speech .delivered at the Congress on 28th April, in support of the motion, as supplied by our London correspondent. By the samo mail we receivod also, in pamphlet form, the full text of the address. Incidentally, we may remark that the brochure is highly creditable to the Eoman printer. The accuracy of its typography is remarkable, and only an expert would note the slight tokens hero and there indicating foreign workmapship. Sir Joseph Ward's arguments weru well-marshalled and convincing. Premising that the world at large would bo a gainer by the reform in four directions — national, commercial, educational, and domestic — he maintained that tho sole objection was loss of revenue, n difficulty, ho assured the congress, that Would be only temporary. He may possibly never have read tho essays o^ "the learned blacksmith," the pioneer of the reform, but ho approached the subi'ect from the identical basic principle, t had, he said, been brought forcibly to his mind that "at this Postal Conferonce was to bo found a federation of peace and goodwill among nations. It will, I think, be conceded," he went on to say, "that there is no organisation outside the Post Office that could bring together such a truly representative gathering." Passing to the commercial aspect of the question, he dwelt on the injustice of exacting from those who use the postal service an amount far in excess of the, cost of transacting the work, which he described as "penalising them twice over." The commercial community as well as private correspondents paid their full share of general taxation, and "tho Post Office ought not to be used as a taxing machine." Having dealt with general principles, ho was able to adduce cogent arguments from experience. For over five years New Zealand had had the widest range of penny postage in the world, "over a hundred responsible administrations having agreed to accept its 'letters at a penny and deliver them without surcharge." In venturing on the reduction, he looked forward to a greatly increased volume of correspondence, and anticipated that tho colony would recover tho whole of its revenue in about threo years ; and his expectations were fully justified by the result. For, as he was careful to point out, the increased expenditure involved in the additional work bore no comparison to the returns. The preliminary estimates was five per cent., which was somewhat in excess of the actual result. The importance of this fact was emphasised when it was remembered that the colony was one of small population. In densely-populated lands tho ratio of expense to revenue would bo proportionately less. Brief reference was made to Canada and Egypt, in each of which countries th© experiment bad proved a complete success, and an emphatic recommendation of penny postage in the report of tho Postmaster-General of tho United States of America, for tho year 1903 was quoted. Of course, he said, no resolution of tho congress could be mandatory on the countries concerned j but the affirmation of tho principle, should "| ensure to any country desiring to establish universal penny^ postage the right at least that all letters from that country shall bo delivered without surcharge to every other country within tho Postal Union," as the country of origin would be the only on* to bo '' affected by tho financial outcome of tho reduced rate." Our own experience has already shown the necessity of such a provision. Tho reduction of inland postage necessarily caused a much more immediate loss of revenue than a reduction of foreign rates, yet countries which had successfully mad© the greater change still hesitated about the less. 'Since tho Postal Union fixed tho 24d rate in 1874, practically nothing had been done in th» way of reduction, and tho time wks ripe for a change. " I have endeavoured, ho said in conclusion, " to place before the congress the views of a country that is the only ono that so far has in operation tho principles of a system of universal penny postage, which has worked well in every' respect — nationally, commercially, domes' tically, and above all financially." The vote of the assembly showed that th* time is liot yet ripe for the change. Tho world still needs educating up to the point, and the real effect of Sir Joseph Ward's speech can only be estil mated later on. It was one of the moat I important delivered at the Oonxreee j

its facts, its ideas, and its suggestions ■will find lodgment in quarters where they are likely to germinate ; and we anticipate that at the next .Postal Conference there -will be more than one eloquent advocate of the reform, and a largely increased vote in its favour.