The daily crescent. [volume] ([New Orleans, La.]) 1848-1851, 1848-10-12

THE DEAD-LETTER OFFICE. The story of
Adele Barron, published in a recent number of the
Knickerbocker, which turns upon some missing
letters, has brought to mind an incident related by
Frank Granger having occurred when he was
at the head of the Post-office Department A letter
was one day received from the Postmaster of a
town NewJersey, enclosing letter very old and
covere with fiy-specks in every part, except
whers tape had passed over it. indicating that it
had been for a long time placed in the paper or
card-rackof some bar-room or shop. The super
scrptiOn if there ever had been any, had entirely
faded away. The Postmaster wrote that he had
found it IN his eterbOx, and had tried in vain to
discover who had deposited it there, in order that
it might receive proper direction, it apparently
contained money. As it had not been advertised,
it not, in striciness, dead-letter but he sent
it TO the department in order that they might dis
pose of it. The Postmaster General took the re-
sponsibility of opening it, and found that it was
dated at Philadelphia in the year 1921, twenty
years before,) and enclosed twentydollar bill of
the United States Bank Ii was addressed by
man to his wife, at a small village not far from the
Post-office where the letter was found, informing
her that he 1.-THE writer should start for home in two
or three days but that, as his brother was about
TO leave for home, he took advantage Of the Oppor
tunity TO send her by him the enclosed sum of
money wherewith to make preparations for an APP
preaching wedding. The Postmaster General
caused letter to be written to the address of the
writer, informing him of the circumstances. In the
course Of a week, a reply was received from fe-
male, who stated that the writer Of the letter was
her father, and the one whom it was addressed
was her mother, both of whom were dead that,
twenty years BEFORE on the eve of her own wedding,
she remembered that her father and uncle had
quarreed, the former having been led, from some
suspicious circumstances TO discredt the latter's
assertion that he had lost letter containing money
entrusted to his care and to insnuate that he had
appropriated the amount to his own use. The CON
sequence was, that all intercourse between the
families had from that time been suspended, and
that she should Immediately write to her uncle and
COUSINS who were still living, at distance to beg
that the intercourse and friendship so long inter
rupted might be resumed-the discovery of this let
ter having satisfied her of what she had long
pected, that her fal her was wrong and relieved her
mind from a weight of painful anxiety. Whether
any farther clue to the manner in which the letter
had arrived at the office at so laie period was
ever ascertained is not known; the probability is,
that the letter had been picked up at or near some
country tavern on the road, and was placed, with
the variety of business cards and miscellaneous pa
pers which usually fill the tapes over the mantel-
piece of such place, and there it had remained
from year to year, perhaps concealed rom notice
by other papers and letters, until, on change OF
landlords, or an Improvement of the house, the
landlord had disposed of it by depositing it IN the
nearest Post-office. y. Home Journal