Washington standard. [volume] (Olympia, Wash. Territory) 1860-1921, 1876-09-09
WHOLE NO. &|l.
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To tho Editors Of tho New York
Ercni,ig Posi-Now, whom there 10 %
much worrying aud wailing and legi~lat-
ing about economy in postage. may I
ask your attention to a copundrum
touching that matter? II you wr.to TO
person III certain foreign countries.
Cur Government will forward your let
ter without requiring you 10 prepay the
postage; but if you write to q person in
your own or neighboring State, you
must not only prepay, but be sure you
do not fall short single penny, for II
you do, the government will be afraid
to risk collecting the penny at the other
end, but will rush your letter to the
dead-letter Office (at an expense of
about two cents), and then write you
(at On expense of three cents) that you
can have it by writing for. it (prepay-
ment of three cents) and enclosing
three cents for its transmission. To il
lustrate our system: A fortnight ago
citizen of Hartford mailed letter, di-
rected to me at this place where I am
summering and inadvertently fell one
cent one cent short of full prepayment.
The post-office authorities held coun-
Gil of war over it and then sent It to
Washington in charge of an artillery
regiment, at great cost to the nation.
The dead-letter department worried
over it several days and nights, and then
wrote me (at a cost of three cents) that
I could have my letter for three cent
stamp or its equivalent in coin. I, like
an ass, sent for it, thinking it might
contain a legacy, and yesterday it ar
rived here in q man-of-war, at vast ex-
.pense to the Government, and was
brought to these premises by three COM
panies of marines and morter battery,
all of whom stayed to supper. The let
ter had nothing in it but doctors bill.
On the same day received heavy let
ter from England with q one-penny
stamp on it and the words "Collect
eighteen pence" 1t had been for
warded from Hartford without ever GO,
ing to the dead letter Office. The CON-
undrum I wish to ask ia this: If letter
be under-prepaid, would it not be we'll
to do it up in a rag ard send it along,
taking the risk of collecting the deficit
at the other end, as used 70 be the cus-
tom before we learned 80 much. How
ever, the expense which I land the
Government) incurred in the transmis-
sion of doctors bill, which / did not
want, and do not value now that have
got it, was not the gravest feature Of
this unfortunate episode. The post
master-general was removed from the
cabinet for not collecting storage for the
six days that my letter remained in the
dead letter office. It seems to me that
this punishment was conspicuously dis
proportional to the offence.
MAax Txnx.
Hmirq, N. Y, July ~, 1876. ~
IT was characteristics of Mr.. Twain's
kind heart that he prepaid the postaes
on the foregoing letter to ourselves With
stamps amounting to thirty CENTS,
when three cents would doubtless have
answered every purpose. Having besa
directly instrumental in procuring the
removal of one postmaster general, he
has resolved that no act Of his sbould
result in another like injury to . pubic
officer or to the country. Il il TO b
regretted that sundry moro frequent
correspondents of ours are not equally
considerate; aside from its poIiticsl
bearings, a little thoughtfulness on
their part would often have decided
influence on the weight Of the editorial
purse.-Eds. Eue,,irg Post.