new system would be to cumber it with the inelasticity of the old. As thus: A requires five words to express his address, whilst B requires only two. Is B to pay as much for his address as A? Surely he should have the advantage of his short address, and be able to send three more words in his message. The work performed by the Post-office is the same in each case. The charge for doing it, therefore, should be the same.
No doubt the change of practice will be felt at first by persons sending what may be designated social telegrams, as distinguished from business telegrams, especially if the Post-office is hard in its views of what words in the address are to be charged for as single words. With a liberal method of counting, much if not all this dissatisfaction may be swept away. It has been suggested that every address should be regarded as containing four words; but this would make the system inelastic, in the manner we have just described in speaking of free addresses. It would surely be far better to make all streets, roads, squares, crescents, &c., one word each; all numbers of streets, &c., one word; and all names of towns, villages, &c., one word. Then the cost of the addresses would be brought within such reasonable limits that few would grumble at having to pay for them.
A few examples will show this:[1]
1 234 5 6
"Smith, 344 Tottenham Court 12 3
7 8
Road, London,"
4
which is by no means as long an address as might easily be found, would, under the present system of counting, swallow up no fewer than eight of your twelve words; whilst under the proposed system, it would only take four of them. Again –
1 23 4 5 6
"Smith, 16 Oak Hill Park, 12 3
7 8
Tunbridge Wells," 4
would, under the present system, count as eight words, whilst under the proposed, it would count as four only.
1 23 4 5
"Smith, 16 Charles Street,
12 3
678 Berkeley Square, London,"
4 5
would now count as eight, then as five words only.
It is plain, however, from the facts which we have already placed before the reader, that if the proposed tariff of 6d. for twelve words is to be adopted, the hope of any such reduction in the addresses must be abandoned, seeing that already, without this reduction, it is to be feared that in a very short time the cost of the telegraph service will have outstripped its producing powers. The only hope of such a reduction would be in combination with a tariff somewhat higher than that at present contemplated.
We do not particularly recommend the adoption of the German rate, though its principle is undoubtedly sound; and some modification of it would probably be the best solution of the difficulty. The Post-office authorities may be afraid of being overwhelmed with
- ↑ The figures written above the line represent the present, those under the line the suggested, method of counting.
