[324] "I trust that after the reimposition of postage on newspapers has been fairly in working order, we shall then have the Post Office a self-sustaining department."—Sir William Mulock, Postmaster-General, Parl. Debates, Canada (Commons), 1st April 1898.
[325] Sir William Mulock, Parl. Debates, Canada (Commons), 1st April 1898, col. 2915.
[326] "Hon. gentlemen are entirely in error in assuming that the length of the journey does not make extra cost. It lays the foundation for extra claims by railways, and there is in the department at present, on the part of practically all the railways in Canada, application for increased payment. It is quite impossible to treat newspaper postage in the same way as letter postage."—Sir William Mulock, ibid., 11th July 1900.
[327] "This new Bill is little else than a special tax and handicap on certain Montreal newspapers, which are the only ones which have the bulk of their circulation outside of their own province. We have always favoured newspaper postage, but we are not favourable to its being collected off a few papers, and thus making them pay for the carriage of their own mails."—Mr. Foster, Parl. Debates, Canada (Commons), 10th July 1900.
Sir Wilfrid Laurier made some interesting observations. He said: "A newspaper is merchandise, a letter is not. A letter simply conveys to somebody the views and thoughts of another. But newspapers are merchandise, and the publisher of a newspaper a manufacturer of merchandise which he sells. Now, I do not see any reason why this class of merchandise should not pay freight for its transportation as well as any other class of merchandise."—In Canadian House of Commons, 10th July 1900.
[328] Sir William Mulock, ibid., 11th July 1900.
[329] Ibid., 3rd July 1903.
[330] Ibid., 25th January 1905.
[331] "The growth of the Post Office from this humble beginning solidified the American Colonies and made independence possible."—The American Post Office, by Nathan B. Williams. Reprinted as Senate Document No. 542 of the 61st Congress, 2nd Sess., p. 5.