The Lambertville record. [volume] (Lambertville, N.J.) 1872-1968, 1886-10-06

The Letters that Reach kt and ths
POstmistress who Roads Them.

POstmistress who Roads Them.
A gentleman who spent summer travel
ling in the Rocky Mountains gives the fol-
lowing account of little, gray haired old
lady he found living alone in log cabin of
two rooms far up the slope of most DESC
late mountain. The cabin was mile from
any other house, and the nearest town was
ten miles distant. On the shelves back of
little pine counter in a corner of the room
were cans of tomatoes, peas and cans of
condensed milk.
+" keep little grocery store, and thread
and needles, and pins, and such things,
bein's I'm postmistress," said the old lady
in the cheeriest of voices
Postmistress ?" queried the traveller.
Oh yes" was the reply.
Where IRE the letters and the Office ?"
Here as she smilingly took cigar
box down from shelf, and opening it
showed the man dozen or more letters
bearing evidence of having been handled
many times
The mail comes two times week.
Wednesdays and Saturdays, but most of
the boys come round Saturdays"
The boys ?" asked the stranger.
g Yes the prospectors and miners scat,
tered all round over the hills. There's
good many of 'em, but they don't write
much nor get many letters. Still the Post
Office is comp'ny for me. 1t brings all the
boys to see me once in a while. Are you
going up by the Lone Star Mine ?"
No, think not" said the traveller.
"No? Well, if you was, there's postal
here for Jack Downing. 1t says on it that
he is to come to Denver right off, and I'd
like to send it to him as soon as / can. ]
always read the postals. The boys don't
care, and get real lonesome sometimes"
Just then miner came along and ask.
ed -
" Is Bill Hefiier's Weekly come yet from
Denver?n
Yes" was the reply, but you tell Bill
Eli send it up tomorrow by the stage driver.
| amt done reading it myself yet. Bill
won't care; he never reads it until Sunday,
nohow. II you see Silas Sharpe tell him
that there's postal here from his wife, and
the baby's got the whoopin' cough, but ii
amt whoopin' yet, an his wife don't
think it'll have it hard.p
Any letters for any of the boys up our
way%
~ No, but there's one here for somebody
named j. b. Ryder. Know any such man pn
"No."
Neither do I. It's in thin envelope
and l can see by holdin itup to the light
that it's signed Your own Sarah so
guess he's married, or about to be. II he
don't come round soon, L dunno but I'll
open it and get the address and send 1t
back to his own Sarah,' and tell her that
ho amt here"
When the man had gone the old lady said
10 the traveller
g Yes, the post office is sight of COM
p'ny, speshly when there's lots o. papers
and postals comm and goin'. Then some-
times | write and read letters for some that
can't write. Now, here's letter for John
Brice, Just come IN. He ought to have Il
right off"
:" But it has been opened, y said the travel
Ter.
40, 10, yes opened it myself. wrote
the letter it's in answer to, and I'll have to
read this TO John Brico, anyhow. He can't
read writin'. And felt real anxious to
know II his letter got to his wife, II had q
ten dollar bill in il. Here comes Bob
Iaight. Poor fcllerl declare, If | was
alone I'd shut up the Post Office and hide
some place, for it just makes my heart ache
to tell tlat poor croetnr that there amt no
letter VT for 'em. He's been q comm for
weeks lookup for letter from home, and
none comes. I'm mighty afraid there's
trouble there. Well, well, I'll just have to
tell him they mint no letter, and then cliirk
him up the best | can. Poor salerl"--
DenvG' Tribune.