Postal Pay

The Senate, after much wrangling, finally passed a bill to increase postal pay and postal revenues. Previously, it had rejected a bill to increase postal pay without increasing revenues rather than pass it over the President's veto (TIME, Jan. 19). Since many Senators had promised to vote for increased postal pay it was important that they should vote for some measure of the kind.

This they did last week. Seventy voted for it; only eight--four Republicans (Borah, Brookhart, Norbeck, Norris) and four Democrats (Glass, Harrison, Swanson, Underwood) voted against it.

In the form in which it was passed by the Senate the bill may increase revenues perhaps $40,000,000, perhaps less to meet a salary increase of $68,000,000. The major changes include: raising postage on private mailing cards from 1-c- to 2-c-; reducing rates on newspapers, on magazines (reading matter is reduced from 1 1/2-c- to 1 1/4-c- a pound); imposition of a service charge of 1-c- on each parcels-post package; imposition of a charge of 25-c- for "expedition" service on each parcel-post package.

The Senate bill (officially known as S-3674) had not been transmitted to the House before a House Committee had prepared a resolution. It was later reported with every expectation of being passed. It read:

Resolved, that the bill, S-3674, in the opinion of the House, contravenes the first clause of the seventh section of the first article of the Constitution-- and is an infringement of the privileges of the House, and that the said bill be taken from the Speaker's table and be respectfully returned to the Senate, with a message communicating this resolution.

In short, the House would have none of the Senate bill. The House, if this resolution passes, cancels out the Senate's action and must begin anew to prepare a postal bill.