The Sun.
London, England, 1850-08-09 00:00:00

DIRECTION OF LETTERS.

We must here pause fur a moment to observe, that
it would relieve the servants of the Post-office from in-
finite vexation and trouble, end, to the advantage of all
classes, would cons( quently materially expedite the de-
livery of letters, if the public, of their own accord,
would, or by the imposition of a heavy extra postage
could be required to, reverse the existing foolish fashion
by writing legibly, as the first word of the address of
every letter—the only one out of the present confused
irrelevant mass which the sorter wishes to discover, and
has now to search for—namely, the post town ; atter
which the name of the pretty little village, of the county,
of ' the hall," the lodge," the grove'—or anything else
might at any length be most harmlessly inserted—with,
lastly, that which is of no earthly importance except to
the postman who actually:delivers the letter, the name of
Hubs, Dubs, or Snobs; in short, of the person or per-
sonage to whom it is addressed."
It is suggested, moreover, by the Qaarterly Reviewer
that all letters should be charged threepence postage
which are not adorned with a " queen's head,' seeing
the enormous expense and trouble accruing from the
practice of pre-payment with pennies. He recom-
mends, moreover, with a view to deprive the Post-
office officials of all temptation to commit robberies,
that no cash should be allowed to be transmitted, ex-
cepting through the medium of the money-order de-
partment. After describing one of the riding boys, a
fine little fellow, named Richard Martin, Sir Francis
facetiously makes the following observations :
" On the Queen's birthday these riding-boys receive a
hat with a fine gold hand and cockade,-a bright scarlet
jacket, a beautiful bine waistcoat, and—just as if Joseph
Hume had then suddenly clasped them round the waist
—nothing more! We should be sorry to implant in
heir light hearts a seed of discontent, yet, when we re-
flected on the everlasting bumping work they have to
perform, we must own that, from a very slight experience
in such matters, it occurred to us that her Majesty's
Postmaster-Gereral, who not improbably knows some of
the uses to which buckskin can be applied, might surely
take en opportunity of explaining in respectful, appro-
priate, but in most pathetic terms, that these fine little
boys, who convey the correspondence of the commercial
metropolis of the world, are unscientifically covered at
the wrong end; that it would be more creditable to is
great nation to clothe them all over; and that at all
events it v. ould be infinitely more agree able to them to
go with their heads bare
Because they've got no hats to wear,'
than, as at present, the contrary."
Having mentioned a case of extraordinary absence of
mind, in which bank notes, amounting to 1,500/. had
been sent through the post in a blank envelope, the
reviewer casually records this superb Americanism
An overtired Yankee, travelling in Kentucky, called
at a log-hut for refreshment. The young woman of the
hovel, that she might quickly spread the table, gave him
her infant to hold, and in a few minutes laying before
him a homely meal, she then modestly retth ued to her
w .rk. The long-backed man, naturally enough, was
enraptured at the sight of the repast, and overwhelmed
by conflicting feelings of gratitude to the young woman,
of adcairatieu of the lovely infant that sat smiling on his
knee, and c f extreme hunger—in a fit of absence of mind,
exactly such as caused the person in England to post a
letter containing 1,5004 without any address, he, to the
horror of the hostes4 all of a sudden, with great energy,
kissed the loaf,—buttered the child's face,—and cut
its head off !—at least, so runs the story in Kentucky."
Another suggestion, relating to the seals of letters,
we have not yet referred to ; it is as follows :
" If the public', especially 'Ler. of business, would in-
scribe upon their seals their addresses, instead of their
crests or coats-t f arms, they would, in any of the cases
we have mentioned, including that of sending money in
undirected envelopes, enable the inspector of the dead-
letter offica to return them their packsts, &c., unopened."
Prior to this masterly contribution, in the current
number of the Quarterly there are three articles of
various ability. One is a biographical paper, sug-
gesed by " Arago's Life of Cundorcet," a paper in
which the career ef the revolutionary philosopher is
detailed with admirable lucidity. From a pleasant
go sipping article on " Spectacles" we transcribe two
amusing anecdotes :
'• There lived in the west of England a few years since
an enthu,istic geologist,—is Poctar f ity and
Chairman of the Quarter Ses,ions. A farmer, who had
seen him presiding on the bench, overtook him shortly
afterwards while sewed by the roadside on a heap of
stostes, which he ens busily breaking in search of fossils.
The farmer reined up his horse, Fez: l at him far a
minute, shoals his head in cotumifera.in i f he mutability
of humen things, and then exclaimed in mingled tones a
pity and surprise, What, Doctor! be you come to this
a'ready?' "
"A comic story, told by Dr. Kitchiner, has had its