New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1852-01-27
Sir Francis gives an interesting description

Of the
PARIS PosT-oFFIcE.
IN. French Post Ofirt undertakes 10 deliver no'
opI to every CITY 10 village or hamlet IN france
bui ~ every house cottage ard mil within tae ter
ri,ory OF TIE Reputi, every Letter tnat aooresseo
n. ~, ealing at the Post Office &c ask per mission
To g., IT. cetails Il PIEou. who mad happened TO
resf q publication By ne GescTiptTe a. NE Lohnoa
tskire ne over me Whole pul BE most oolsingy m
:rcru 81 ne 10 me Present. VI. 1haIer, HnO also
die ne ire honor 70 acCoB2Af ne over consl1sI-
Cd e part OF ine important establishment over rhen
ne Insurers of The French Post Office Depart
rpert Is subcIyiCed INTO FIVE branches
TOM. Plron ss administrator, IL solely committed
II. rslson, uncer VARIOUS oiceis Of the follow
/ tn. COMMUNICATIVE organiz4ti n-ant De
termination OF routes OF the coureTs. and OF the
t,spsportstloB az the rais ny railways nail carts
q, b, rrivae contract the parsuon and depot oil
usps AID ans the sfTaI gen eht 81 correspondence
ylh the different ofces inquiries ailer lost pacA-
as.f OF letfers. The drawing 10 Of conventions ana
treaties Win foreign tmcts, anu cClIespo-OtAeo
relau,e 70 trelI execution
. The general supeilntendence and Inspection OF
tie lerieT pos'al service the employment OF the o.
fc.rs q every grace; the installation OF the super
int,nd,nis ara Ie,tersorters the formation Of the
repo,s 70 be furnished to the Inspectors OF Finance
and OF the Post Office investigator and correspond
ence relative 10 uqulEles amer letters ana news
papers. .,.
g. CorespoI dence relative 10 exemptions and In
fractions expenses OF the staff IN all the depart
ments repression Of fraud disputed matters
4 The yentcauon and AUDITING OF articles and &C
counts
5. Exam alton Of dead letters aud papers also OF
those refused or unclaimed.
To NJ. Langeyln Is committed:
l. The creation and suppression OF relays the
regulation and payment Of the courier servlce-also
OF pOs'mssiers drawing up the BOOKS OF routes Ioi
the couIiets arrangement OF post horses at fdlls'
2 SuperiIteIdence of the contracts Tor the con-
veyapce OF dispatches agreements for the conStfuc-
ton and maintenance Of the mall carts OF the sv-
cling posI-Offces and etteT-cariages ana o. an the
ma:eTlel necessary for the convey ahce OF the mails
supenntendence Of the couIlers, pOrters, and mes
sengeTs OF the Post Once.
8 Steamboat service.
Financial department Preparation Of the budg-
ct and MANAGEMENT of the expresses the reimburse
melt OF sums improperly received payment oil the
salaries of the staff Of Paris and also IN the Depart
mems.
s. TIE maintenance of steamboats,, &c. prepare
ion Of treaties to ne made with contractors faorl-
cation and delivery Of postage stamps.
The superintendence of the receipts and ex-
penditure az Paris and IN the Departments, &c &C
The remainder o. the business of the once Is com
United to NJ. Chocquet, NJ de Leindre, and h Ba-
beau each Of whom superiI tend details OF consider
able Importance.
BESIDES the buTeaux in the General Office, there
are also IN Paris twelve principal and fifteen supple
mental Offices where the public prepay or regis
ter letters for the departments or for foreign coun-
uies, or forward OF receive by post money. The
prI cipal Offices distinguished by the FIRST twelve
letters OF the alphabet open 10 the public from
in tire morning TIL at night, excepting on sun
DAYS fetedsys hen they are closed at 5o'cock.
Under the system Of GENERALIZATION which charac-
terzes every public Office in France an Eng'ishman
is constantly surprised 70 see how very Simply and
scientifically operations. clnmslly executed IN Eng
land are performed IL Paris For instance atter NJ
pron had arisen nom HE mulfarlcHs papers TO ac-
company me. | observed hun give one gentle tap
With the OGDEN holder Of his zen against me board
cd all in front Of ms desk. HIS Secretary lmine-
lie q tOnfhaf a
which caused bel outside the opposite wall Of the
to strike one, on which IN came his messenger
Now III I'll gland, 10 produce these two articles, AZ
least twenty times ne much noise would have been
manufactured indeed IN London, II che great nan
drives TO The open door OF another great man, the
great mans porter immediately shuts It IN the face
The great SitoIs great Ootman tha: he, the great
visitors great footman, may have an opportunity OF
disturbing every man Of genius IN tn nelghb0rhood,
BY belsb0Tng an ugly-facet knocker within nall
d1zen inches not only Of his own nose but OF the
nose Of the great mans porter, Who within, IS hold
ing the handle OF the door beabored on purpose TO
open II with a flourish es soon as the rude, harba-
IOus uDsct niic operation has beenfully completed
TIE business of the Post. Office in Paris, ike that
of Loncon, is divided into Two great operations,
namely, the receipt and the delivery OF letters
AS all The aIterial postal lines from Paris to the
Departments of France and hey end them TO the resi-
of the world, radlse for greater or less distances
from the metropolis railways. from the termni of
which the letters are dispatched by steamers dill
Cences, MALE. postos, canals &C. there are now no
mail caches in Paris. The letters to and from the
main Office 10 the metropolitan tsrmnl OF Ahe various
railways, are conveyed in closed fourgons, which
will be described those TO and from me man ONCE,
from and the several pOst-ofces IN rams IN large
roony caleches On the arrival OF the ciiertnt de-
scr,tions of carriages the great post otce, all are
brought into a large, light, well-NentLated room,
containing long tables, upon whlcn they are tossed
On one sice Of these tables | observed seated a
VOW OF posimen. in tlue uniform coa's-on oee
there "A medal-vith red collars, whose sole
du,y (Which does not require any great amount Of
ttllec s to arrange the letters with all their faces
locking the same way and When THIS mas been ell
ieced ey are handed to row OF clerks on the OPP
pOsite slfe ~ the table who dlYice them INTO TWO
great classes. namely, letters for Paris, and for the
rest Ct the NOIld' They axe then stamped by seven
ivfye Office clerks, dressed IN bouSes with red col
lars Those for Parissns remain on the ground
1ooY, these for the inhabitants Of the Departments
and Tor the rest OF the human race, b. means OF
pulley ard rope, are made 10 ascend INTO region
above
] had often remalied ,ha. on French letters, and
indeed generally speaking, on those from the Con,
tlntnt, the postnaIk is much more clearly dehned
han our Eneliih letters. On searching for the
reason Of his dfefeI perceived 10 be taat the
lines ard letters OF the French stamp, 10 which ihere
is ceannalee Tor altering the da'e, project
where's. IN Ergard, they are often excavatsd from
a Il Il surface
TIE final Distribution Of the letters from III parts
81 re wcrlC to Paris is leIoImed at ten tables, by
fourteen men al each, al! II uniform, and supern-
tended by a Superintendent responsible for ALI IN
This duty bohelo quietly WoIklIg IN or room, l0V
pOsmen. 10 were themselves TO deliver the letters
they were sorting. At fve minutes before the time
for actually stating heard bell ring On which
he whole $50 posiIntn IN uniform be ore me rose
AID all began each 20 place his batch OF let
itrs INTO neat patent leather diEpa,ch box, srs-
Ientec nom his Iec6 by black telt. and contain
lIg three compartment one FOR letters one Tor
De wgpapeis, al one for money. Beneath the 10 IS
Polt'0ho fcr registered letters and 10 the onSde
= eii1td a. lrkstanc, with hole for pen. Every
resin heeic IS beng II rnou. has on his bEeas
Il gilt hacee or which Is his number.
As soon as these Arrangements we're c1nc-ndei
DE 10 men, IN 4 body let ire IOoa- We accom-
panied them 70 ire interior % a hoIO square
lOnGd by the various oili,eS Of the department
where We found assembled Zine omnsuses into
each u ytlcl tLeqe quickly stepped ff.cen men "a
table gorg } e.e.y om-lbus. teIefore, was " Ia
he As each man, wearing q gl4zed hat, toos rs
psce he pulled his black stinLng Lever box which
Z walking az hung behind lin, round IN 'front.'