Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1882-02-18

EMPLOYEES.
1t is seldom that one stops to think when he
drops letter into a box on street lamp. or
shoots it through one of the .'drops." at the
City Post Office, what number of busy hands
the letter will pass through before it reaches its
Hnaa destination. If the letter could be followed
through the hands Of the sorters. stampers, and
distributors till it is ''tied out" and thrown with
others into pouch; If the rush to get the piles
of pouches into the mail wagons, which rattle
and CHATTER to the depot, where the pouches are
taken again by other men. always in a hurry.
could be seen if then one could take night ride
on the postal car with the silent and swift
workers, who deftly reassort all the letters, and
then follow the letter when its pouch is
thrown from the car through another scene of
bnsting activity till it is at length delivered BY
carrier at the door OF the person to whom it
was addressed, one would have before him. like
panorama the whole postal system. 1t is an
endless panorama. for the work is nev er finished
THE POPULAR NOTION
OF the work of post Office is gained by peering
through the windows and the glazed boxes at
the heaps of mail bags and letters and tiers of
boxes and shadOwy asles and passages to be
seen within. A STAR reporter penetrated to
this mysterious region the other day just as the
hustle was at its height in preparation for a
mail which would be sent to the depot in few
minutes. At first there seemed to be confused
gathering OF men working at tables and boxes
ana dragging trucks about the floors. few
seconds of observation, however, sufficed to
show that each man had his place and the whole
force was working under admirable discipline
AT one end OF the room was a large table or
platform upon which the letters and postal
cards mailed by the public outside kept con-
stantiy dropping. 1t was about half-past four
O'Clock, and the letters rained upon the table
very fast, as clerks and others on their way
nome thrOng the Office at that hour. Uncle
Sans mail kept coming in by a rear entrance
1t was bound in great sacks. and the sacks were
piled up together near the middle of the great
room. The letters and postal cards that kept
Sliding down upon the table were sorted as fast
as they came by two men. These men had only
to arrange them for
THE STAMPERS
who sat at long narrow table behind them
The letters were placed together. 80 that the
stamp" corner would always come under the
hand OF the starnpers. There were three stamp
ers at work. They sat with their right sides
turned to the desk, just as boys are taught to
sit in school when learning to write The
stamper grasped in his hand hand-stamp, while
at convenient distance from his hand was q
pad covered with the lux used in cancelling let
ters; In the space in front of him were placed
theletters to be stamped and these he deity
arranged with his left hand. The first letter he
stamps very deliberately, making sure that his
stamp is in order, then he works as fast as his
hand can mOve-sO fast that the constant tap
ping of the stamp is like the beating of drum
The rap!dity and accuracy with which these
stampers work is something wonderful. Their
hands are nnerring. On good run when the
letters are OF uniform size and REQUIRE little
handling, the stamper will dispose of 200 letters
minute. When going at this speed his right
nand gong to the ink pad and back between
each letter, he will note the slightest Imperfect
ton IN an impression. He is required not only
to cancel the stamp perfectly but also to make
the date mark iegible. Each stamper has
number. and his stamp impresses this number
on the envelope together with the date mark
III an imperfect cancellation is discOvered bv this
number 1t can be traced directly to the stainper
VINO was at fault
THE BEST POSTMARKING IN THE COUNTRY
In consequence of this. said an old post office
employe to The STARrepOrter, as the latter stood
watching the rapid motion of the stampers
the best poStmarkng in the country is done
right here in this Office, and the Postmaster
General will tell you So"
The rapid, unerring mechanical motion of the
expert stampers only comes with months of
practice Each stamper has his own dies, stamps
ana little case of type. and is required to keep
them III order. besides arranging his date marks
whenever he changes the lettering on the stamn
he Is required to record an impression i'm a book.
where 1t can at any time be found if mistake
In date calls for investigation. Under POST
MASTER Anglers administration not only have
all the general regulations of the department
been strictly enforced, but such local regulations
nave been adopted as to secure the utmost accu-
racy. The system of numbering the stampers
thereby putting every man on his metal. has re-
Gently Deen adopted in Philadelphia and other
offices.
The worst pOstmarking in the country" said
the aforementioned old post office employe sis
done In baltimore. Out of a dozen letters tn
come from there hardly half of them will have
iegibe postmarks. There any enploye of the
Office who doesn't happen to be doing ANYTHING
else at the time does the stamping
Run AGROUND.
lies run aground" said Mr. Horace p.
Springer, the superintendent of mailing and
distribution referring to a particularly expert
young stamper, who had suddenly ceased work.
The stamper rose from his seat, went to his
little case, adjusted his stamp ard. returning to
his place. resumed his work There YOU can
see what the trouble was said Mr.. Springer pick
ing up the letter on which the stainper STONED
work. One OF the II cures in the date was very
faint, showing that the type had s'dropDed
down The stamper though he was running
the letters under his hand at the rate of 100 or
more minute, had discovered this defect almost
instinctively.
LEFT-HANDED LETTERS.
The greatest drawback to rapid stamping is
the fact that some people persist in sticking
stamps on the left-hand corner of enyelopes,
and sometimes in the most unheard of places.
When ''left-handed' letter comes to the hand.
the human stamping machine is thrown out of
gear at once. and the hand has to be reversed in
order to cancel the stamp and affix the date
mark properly. Now and then letters come to
hand having as many as six or eight different
stamps, and each stamp requires separate trip
OF the hand to the ink-pad and back ''The per-
centage OF left-handed letters" said Mr. Spring
er. lis small, but still there are great num-
Der of them"
STAMPING MACHINES
A little removed from the stampers tables are
two small machines worked with an ordinary
crank and balance wheel. These aremachines de-
vised to take the place Of the human machines
at the stamping table. The smaller one is in
tended for postal cards. and has been in use in
this Office and other Offices for some time The
other is intended for stamping letters, and is