The Redwood gazette. [volume] (Redwood Falls, Minn.) 1873-1940, 1890-11-06
DEAD MALL MATTER.
An Interesting Circular Issued by
the Dead Letter Office.
why Millions OF Letters and Parcels Fail
to Reach Their Destinatlon-Sngges-
tions That Should lse Observed
by Everybody.

over SIX million pieces OF mall mat
ter are sent annually to the Dead Letter
Office by reason of incorrect, illegible,
or deficient address, insufficient postage,
insecure inclosing, whereby matter
mailed becomes separated from the en-
velope or wrapper, or the failure to be
called for or delivered to the person ad-
dressed. This is daily average of
over twenty thousand pieces.
OF these the greater portion either
are not called for at the post Office to
which they are directed, or. in case of
free-delivery offices, the add dresses can
not be found, notwithstanding every
known means is resorted to on the part
of the postal officials to effect delivery.
Matter sent to the Dead Letter Office,
which can not be delivered to the per-
son addressed, is required to be opened
in its treatment for the purpose of re-
turn to the sender, and if the name and
address of the sender be not shown or
can not be ascertained from the con-
tents, and it contains no valuable in
closure, it must be destroyed.
Letters opened and found to contain
tered upon proper records, and, of such,
those which do not disclose sufficient
information to enable them to be re-
turned are filed, subject to reclamation
upon proper application and identifica-
tion.
Letters which contain no inclosure Of
obvious value are not recorded.
Packages and parcels are recorded,
and where they do not disclose the
name and address of the owner are
filed; If not called for or claimed with
in two years they are disposed of at
public auction and the proceeds covered
into the United States Treasury.
A large proportion of the packages
and parcels sent to the Dead Letter Of
fee fail to be restored to the owners
because of the absence on the wrappers
or Enclosures of any thing to indicate
ownership thereof.
Information as to the character and
nature of the matter thus received at
the Dead Letter Office, and the condi-
tions and influences which occasion its
failure to reach the persons to whom
interest, and the mere statement of it
carries with it suggestions which may
serve the public in its exercise of postal
privileges.
During last year 451, 900 letters were
either misdirected or insu fficiently di-
rected, while "a, 900 were not directed
at all. OF the latter many were from
business houses containing money,
drafts, stocks and important instruc-
tions. Many OF these were doubtless
mailed by clerks. Ninety-eight thou
sand were to domestic, Canadian or
Mexican addresses held for postage;
165. 600 were to guests at hotels; 50, 600
were parcels of merchandise, books,
clothing, needle-work, jewelry or other
valuable matter; and $4,000 contained
money amounting in all to $4S,642.
Postal notes to the value of S., 800 in
sums under S. were found in 1000
pieces; while drafts, checks, notes and
other commercial paper in the sum of
81, 471,S71 were found in $4,000 others.
Forty.eight thousand contained paid
and cancelled obligations, receipts and
miscellaneous papers. One hundred and
sixty-two thousand contained postage
stamps.
Forty-two thousand were letters to
fictitious addresses and principally cor
respondence relating to what is known
as green goods" or saw dust" swim
dies, many of them containing money
with orders for the purchase of these
fraudulent goods. Parties engaged in
such enterprises invariably. use an as
sumed name, and when the character
and business of such persons is discov-
cred by the postal authorities such mat
ter addressed to them is declared 'icti-
tious," and delivery withheld.
Forty-two thousand contained photo
graphs. 1000 contained articles forbid
den to be transmitted through the mails,
and 11,0oo upon being opened were
found to contain lottery tickets. which,
under the terms of the law, are declared
unmailable.
Five hundred and thirty-one tn ou-
sand were letters, and 1000 parcels of
printed matter, samples, etc., which
had been mailed in foreign countries to
post offices within the United States,
and failing of delivery were sent to the
Dead Letter Office, and thence returned
to the postal administrations of their
respective countries Of origin, un-
opened.
Two hundred and five t. 1rsand were
letters. and $1,000 were parcels, books,
samples of merchandise, ETC., which had
been mailed within the United States
addressed to foreign countries, and hav-
ing failed of delivery at their destina-
tion, were sent to to the Dead Letter
Office by foreign postal administrations.
Over 5000, 600 of the letters received
at the Dead Letter Office contained no
Enclosure of obvious value, although
doubtless many of them were quite as
valuable and important to both sender
and addressee as thousands Of other
letters containing money, checks,
stamps, etc, and yet Of this immense
number of letters over 5000, 900 bore
within either no definite or sufficient
address Of the writer-in most cases no
address whatever-or there was no sig
nature whereby the writer might be
identified or determined, without which
the Dead Letter Office could not make
return.
These facts teach that envelopes
should always be plainly and explicitly