The Cecil Whig. [volume] (Elkton, Md.) 1841-current, 1878-11-02
THE POSTAL SERVICE.

THE POSTAL SERVICE.
\ late writer in the New York Herald
has been writing up the L. =. Postal Ser
vice between New York and Washington,
and inasmuch as many of the most efficient
clerks in the service are from this county,
We publish the subiu!ned extract from the
Herald FOR the information of our readers.
Vim. II. Elder, referred To III the article. is
All old resident ri EIkton and has been en-
ployed in this service since 1856. except for
a short time during the adminisIrat ION oi
Andrew johnson. When Mr.. Elder first
entered the service it was in its infancy
aud he has probably done much as any
other man living 10 bring it TO perfection.
No less efficient As clerks from this county
are James johnson. Vim. b. Smith. John
I. Bennett, James Denny, and !. Quincy
Elder, all of whom, except the latter, were
appointed by our fellow townsman, Hon. !.
\. j. Creswell, during his administration
of the Post Office Department:
START or THE POSTAL CAR SYSTEM.
The railway mai, service was iuau.uTatcd
III 1864 under The crnei,' superintendent of
Colonel George Il. Armstrong, who urI.i.
mated the scheme. IL amounted To vt:y
little till 1869. when it received its lirst
impetus forward. The Successor 10 Mr.
Armstrong was Mr.. George :. Bangs. who
left To- accept some NOR. lucrative post,
and til. present general superintendent Is
MIR. Theodore y. Naii, who also couicm-
plates leaving to accept the presidency oi
i new telephone company.
TRIr IL POSTAL CAR.
The writer took trip III the postal car
of the New York and Washington lire be-
longing To the Second Division OF the Rail
way Mail Service, which started from
Jersey City one morning at thirty live
minutes past four. BY permission of Mr..
Charles II. kyon, who was acting in the
place of the superintendent. Nj. X. &.
Jackson. he WAS permitted To accompany
the postal car. privilege seldom accorded
To outsiders. At the time, three o clock in
the morning, when he reached Jersey City
the car was standing alone on the dark and
silent track. but with bright lights gleam-
ing through its windows. Four men
found inside busy men could be. They
gave no attention To the intruder. ana
seemed very much absorbed in their work.
Ii appeared they had come over from the
post office iu tn. first mail, that OF two A. II.
laden with over two tons of mail matter
and this they were now engaged in sorting
So as to have 1t disposed of and out of the
way before the next great batch arrived ut
four A. NJ immediately prior to the de
parture Of the train. The force in the car
comprised five men, the head clerk. Mr..
William IL. Elder, aud four oihers-W Wilson
and Chorpeuuing, both designated 'short
stops, OF those who attended To the Way
delivery; Harleston, Through papers,
sIsnlfying the newspaper bundles for distant
points, aud Siivers "newspapeTs.' such ~
were thrown out along the route To the
various town and village newsvendcrs.
The head clerk keeps an eve after the letter
separation term signifying the sorting
of correspondence for the different points
If delivery along the line. The clerks take
oil their uniforms of blue cloth and brass
buttons when they board the car ard don
working suits consisting of blue flannel
shirts aud white overalls with navy caps.
The car is sixty feet long, lighted III the
day time by three windows on either side
aud AZ night by series of German, stu
dents lamps, which throw out a. bright and
steady radiance, are great Improvement
on the old style Of railway burners At
one end OF the car and extending NJ both
sides some distance with a counter in front
/ are a series of 600 letter boxes. each one
labelled with the name of some post Office
route IN each of six or seven States. la
the middle uG the car, on either side. is a
double row of canvass sacks suspended 10y
hooks from iron rods and with mout hs W dc
open gaping for their morning meal If
New York newspapers. Near by are sus
pended score Of strong leasthern bags or
/ pouches, as they are called. They, too, are
empty aud awaiting their varied cousign
meut of worlds correspondence. At the
other end of the car are spaces for the vast
piles Of newspaper matter in sacks destined
for the South aud Southwest.
! TONS OF MAIL NATTER HANDLED
1t is now four o'clock, and the rattle Of
heavy wheels is beard breaking the stiffness
OF the scene. Presently wagon drawn by
/ four well groomed horses whose harness
glitters under the gaslight drives up close
To the side of the track. The driver jumps
oil and cheerily greets the man III the
car. Then he strips of his coat and
buckles To the work of emptying the
four tons of mail matter out of his
wagon. Ii has come from the post office ia
charge OF the Register Clerk Tom Berry.
who jumps on the and adds one more
. To the working force. AS the driver ilIurs
in bag Of papers or pouch of letters il Is
received by one OF the clerks assigned for
that duty, who calls out the name of the
State or agent to whom it is directed -
Then it is handed tn another clerk. whose
business it is to pile up At one end of the
: car the bags for Washington and Peters
burg, Lynchburg AMI Baltimore and lIal,i-
more Railway Post Office. These are not
touched I'LL they get 10 their respective
I destinations. where they are thrown out
and taken charge of by agents in waiting
/ at the various points along the line. There
are separations - FOR Pennsylvania, Della
ware, New Jersey, Maryland, Virginia,
! West Virginia. Georgia, Tennessee and
one even for Alabama. Some Of these
sacks OF mail matter weigh from loo tn 900
/ pounds and even over that where book
matter is carried. The work OF handling
such material on hot Summers day is rs
hard as coal heaving.