Bismarck weekly tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, Dakota [N.D.]) 1884-1943, 1891-10-30
THE CHINESE POSTAL SERVICE.
It Is Controlled by Many Companies and
Is Rather Slow and Crude.

Is EtAther SLOW ana Crude.
For many centuries public dispatches
have been conveyed through China by
means of the department Of the board
of war Postroads originally excellent,
but now disgraceful, radiase from Peking
to all parts of the empire. and ut dis
tances regulated by the nature of the
country are stations where a supply of
horses is supposed to be kept-much as
in Siberia-for the furthering of off.
cial correspondence. Despite the bad
ness of the roads and the generally dilapi
dated condition of the ponies (they are
hardly big enough to be called horses), sur
prising distances are, on urgent occasions.
covered by this means.
In theory the greatest speed is some 200
miles n day, and it is claimed that this is
often actually obtained. But in this (for
China) rapid means of communication the
general public is not permitted to share,
any more than it may in England avail it.
self of the services of a queens messenger.
1t is not to be imagined that a veritable
nation Of shopkeepers like the Chinese
would remain, owing to this refusal of
their government to convey their CORE.
spondence. destitute of a postal service.
They have, indeed, a very complete system
Of their own, entirely independent Of the
state. In every town of any size may be
seen ten or a dozen shops with the sign
Hsin Chu, "letter Office" or postal establish.
ment, suspended outside. Their business
is to carry, not letters only, but small par
GELS, packets of silver, n the like, usual
ly to other towns in the same province. but
also on occasion to other provinces.
They are in fact general carriers, or, per-
haps it would be fairer to say, they occupy
much the same position in China now as
did the agents" at Harwich or Dover, of
the postmaster general at the beginning of
the Eighteenth century-so miscellaneous
are the packages committed to their charge.
They may have no liked tariff varying &C
cording to weight, and there appears to be
no limit, within reason, to the size of let
tiers or parcels they will carry. The charge
for letters is fairly constant. but in esti.
mating the cost of conveyance of parcels
the size and shape alone seem to he taken
into account. A rough calculation is then
made, which the sender is at liberty-if he
can-to abate.
In fact, the transmission of parcels is re.
garded as being quite as much a matter of
bargaining as the purchase of a pig. AS
there is no monopoly, each p%ostonice tries
to underbid its rivals, aud competition
sometimes verges on the ludicrous.
Since the institution of female postofice
clerks in England, how many complaints
doubtless quite %groundless) lave there
not been from would be purchasers of
stamps, who have been kept waiting at
the counter while the mistress and her as.
sistant compare notes on last Sundays
fashions? In China this deplorable state
of things is reversed. There each post.
office has its touts, who go around at very
short intervals to each place of business tc
beg for the privilege of forwarding their
letters. The bankers are the best custom.
ers, and rs post time draws near (post time
is fixed at the open ports by the departure
of the local steamer) you will see Il tout
enter a bank and interrupt the clerks with
an entreaty to be allowed to convey the
letters they have not yet copied. He is
dismissed for half an hour, and mean.
while w or three rivals wild appear with
the same request. The lucky man is he
who happens to come in as the letters are
sealed.
Prepayment is optional, no fine being
levied on unpaid letters. Postage is known
euphemistically as "wine allowance" anC
on the cover of the letter is always noteL
the amount paid or due. Postage stamps
have never, apparently, been thought Of
Some day it will dawn upon one of these
benighted firms how vast are the benefits
of u stamp system. He will then hasten
to supply himself with a varied and pic.
turesque series, which he will dispose of tc
western timbro maniacs at a highly salts
factory profit. Meanwhile his native Gus.
toners, as Il rule, do not prepay their pos
tage, partly because a Chinaman hates tc
pay out money when he can possibly avoid
it, and partly because he considers that his
letter is far more likely to be carried safe
ly and speedily to its destination if the
carriers have an interest in it's prompt de
livery.
The question is not, as was the case il
England fifty or sixty years ago, in any
way a sentimental one: no Chinaman is sc
unreasonable as to feel insulted at having
nothing to pay on his letters. Custom
only requires two classes of correspon.
dence to be prepaid in full-letters to in.
digent relatives and begging epistles.-
Cornhill Magazine.