The western sentinel. [volume] (Winston-Salem, N.C.) 1887-1926, 1889-08-22
DEAD LETTER OFFICE.
A MUSEUM OF MANY CURIOSITIES
AT WASHINGTON.

A MUSEUM OF MANY OURIOSITIES
AT WASHINGTON.
Young Women who Read Love-Letters by
the Million, but Never Gossip-About
Eighteen Thousand Letters Go Astray
Every Day-A Box of Rattlesnakes
WASHINGTON, D. c., Aug 2O-The
Dead Letter Office i'll this city is, in
one sense, the greatest museum in the
world, for here are daily received the
queerest things imaginable. Every
thing that goes astray in Uncle Sans
mail goes to that oi,1c., and in the
course of year every conceivable
kind Of an article, from a paper of
pins or box of soap to a corset and axe
handle, is received. Once each year
the Department: has clearance sale
of the miscellaneous articles which
have accumulated during the twelve
months, and about 10000 are dispo-
sed of at each sale.
1t is estimated that every day in
the year about $4,000 letters, parcels
and packages 60 astray in the mails,
nearly all of which find their way to
the Dead Letter Office. As fast as
received this great mass of mail MAJ
ter is assorted, opened and classified.
The Dead-Letter Office is not very
large, but it is one Of the busiest pla
ces in the National Capital at any
hour of the day. The operatives en-
ployed are nearly all women, as they
are more accurate and skillful than
men in opening, asserting, correcting
and returning the stray mail matter.
All about the room are tables piled
high with letters, parcels and packa-
ges. About twenty five men and wo
men are engaged here. In the gallery
above, seated at tables, are sixty wo
men, who do nothing but read the let
ters received, in order to determine if
they are of sufficient Importance to be
returned to the writer.
Misdirected and only partially ad-
deressed letters are turned over to a
woman who from long experience has
acquired great skill in studying out
addresses and who knows every city,
town, village aud hamlet in the coun-
try. She also knows the names Of the
streets in the different cities and is, in
fact, a veritable United States Gazet-
teer. From her almost infinite knowl
edge of names and places, the faculty
Of deciphering all kinds Of illegible
chirography and her familiarity wit
English, French, German, Italian,
Spanish and Russian she is enab ed to
send to the rightful claimant unopen-
ed, about so per cent. of the misdi
rected and partially addressed letters
received
AS rule, English, German and
French are the prevailing languages
used in addressing letters, although
those inscribed in Italian, Hebrew,
Spanish, Arabic, Persian, Russian
and, in fact, every other tongue, reach
New York from sea voyage, and many
of them are sent to the Dead-Lett-r
Office to be deciphered and readdress
ed in English, SO that the postmasters
whose linguistic accomplishments are
limited may deliver them in the good
old Anglo Saxon.
All letters which cannot be deci
phered by the expert are turned over
to force Of clerks, who open them
and remove all valuables. They are
then put up in packages Of 100 each
and sent to the sixty readers. Money
checks, drafts, and all valuable- taken
from the letters are returned to the
sender, unless the patty tor whom
they are intended can be found. Last
year nearly $1O,OOO,OOO was taken
from letters, all of which was returned
except about $4,000, the owners of
which could not be found
Connected with the department ,t
the Dead Letter Office is Il museum
where the many curious articles that
come in the mails and cannot be re
stored are placed on exhibition All
about the room are upright cabinets
in which the articles are displayed.
Here can be seen toys, jewelry and
pictures Of every description. One OF
the ralest curiosities ever received and
now on exhibition, is sheet of parch
ment on which is penned the Lords
Prayer in City four different Ian
| guages. 1t came to New York in 1842
in the mail from England, and as nc
trace of the owner could be discovered
it was sent to the Dead Letter Office
II is said to be duplicate OF a parch-
ment which hangs in St. Peters at
Rome In one of the cabinets is a
lock of dark brown hair, partly CON
cealed by an envelope, on which is
the inscription: "This is lock Of my
hair. Charles Guitesu." 1t was put
in the mail by the assassin of Presi-
dent Garfield and in due time reached
the Dead Letter Office
A human skull grins at the visitor
from one cabinet, where it has lain
for several years. 1t is brown with
age and came through the mail sever
al years ago
In one case are several hundred
dollars worth Of gold and silver quartz
that has been received from time te
time. Standing in one corner of 8
case is a negro doll that was addressed
to New York society belle! She il
some way discovered what it was, ant
refused to pay the postage due upor
it. Coins of every land and age are il
the collection. A few years ago Cal
was received at the Office, and upon
being opened, sixteen rattlesnake
made their escape. The men ant
women took elevated positions OH tn
tables and gave the reptiles full pos