Delaware gazette and state journal. (Wilmington, Del.) 1883-1902, 1891-05-14
NEW STATE MAIL SCHEDULE.


venient and Prohibits Quick Inter
change of Letters--May Petition for .
| Change.
special Correspondence OF Gazette ana journal
MIDn1ETowN, May 11.--It has just been
| hve Gays since the change in our mail sys-
tenn, but il has been ample time for the
patrons OF the post-ofiiCe to learn that it is
one Of the most abominable changes that
could have possibly been made. Our mail
facilities. were. generally considered very
| good before the change, but instead of
being improved they have been made a
great deal worse, and the people are not
SLOW in expressing their disapproyal of it.
The iirst mail north instead Of leavingat
| II.1i, as II has for several years past, now
| leaves at . o'clock, and no mail from the
lower part of the State is received until
that hour. 1t is claimed that this is
| one of the 'benefitsn of the change
| as mail from Wilmington Philadelphia
and New York, which is mailed after the
last evening mail south will be sent down
to Demar on the midnight Norfolk train
and brought back on the Peninsula express
the next morning and delivered at the diff
ferent towns along the route. BY this
arrangement it is beneficial to the people
| here in so far that it causes the office to he
opened one hour later, delays the mail the
same time and brings the northern mail
here just IL minutes sooner than If sent on
| VIZ i.ENiti tltlIt anu II llt Iilull Is tlll-
usually heavy it cannot be sorted before
the south-bound mail comes, and as the
windows must necessarily be closed while
the mails are being sorted, when they are
finally opened, both mails are delivered at
once.
The other change, which is equally as
announcement, is the last evening mail
SOUTH, which now arrives here at 5.47
instead Of I.47, as formerly. The only
mail received in Philadelphia and other
places from this State at any respectable
hour is that which is sent down ON the
5:47 train to Dover and returned to the
city on the early Norfolk express the next
morning. The arrival of the evening
mail two hours carrier than usual is very
incenvenient for every one, as this makes
the mail open about supper time, just
when our merchants are the busiest
All these changes are bad enough but
the most inconvenient and unnecessary
one Of all is the closing of the postotfice at
7o'eloek in the evening, just two hours
sooner ii has ever been closed before and
AZ q time that makes il practically impos-
sible for the business men, and particu-
larly the farmers to get their mail The
latter are very bitter against the change,
and are not SLOW in saying so.
The correspondent of THE GAZETTE has
talked with number of the business men
of town and they all say That the change
made. They say it is practically impossible
to write to the firms with which they do
business in the northern cities and receive
an answer the same day. With single
exception not one person of the many the
writer has talked with has been satisfied
with the change and this one when asked
the plain question was obliged to admit he
'"dld not see that our facilities has been
improved
Fhe whole community is very much OPP
posed to the change in the mails and par
uelllarly the unnecessary closing of the
post-oiilce at this unheard of hour A
Well-known business man in talking to
the writer this morning said that our
present mail service was wretched, and |
that il a remonstrance was gotten up |
against the change, which there has been |
some talk of doing, every person in the |
nieie hborhood would gladly sign. As stated |
in letter few days ago the only ones TO |
whom the change is the least beneficial
here is to the post office employees, who
now open one hour later and close two
hours sooner than formerly, except Satur-
day evenings, when they keep open until
. o'clock. Consequently they are happy
and think the change good thing but
the people do not share this satisfaction
nor joy
now SMYRNA REGARDS THE CHANGE.
SMYRNA, May ll.--A great deal of dis
$500 SAis.S vi Ile part u many Oh
many OF our citizens in regards to the late
change in the postal service TO such an
extent does this feeling exist that there is
talk o. getting up petition and sending
to the ,post-ottice department at Washing
ton asking it to restore our mail as it was
previous to the change. All mail matter,
as it is now, to reach Smyrna from Phila-
ielphia must be mailed in that city
previous to O'Clock in the afternoon or
else not reaching here until about 10 o'clock
next morning, thereby making it almost
impossible to receive an answer the same
lay to a letter sent from here in the morn
ng which does not leave until 1928,
whereas it should leave earlier 1t is to be
hoped that the postal authorities at Wash
ngton will see the injustice done us and
make the change so much desired.