Pittsburg dispatch. [volume] (Pittsburg [Pa.]) 1880-1923, 1891-11-08
WANAMAKER'S CURI0S
Many Foreign Governments Have
Already Sent Him Exhibits.
THE POSTAL RUNNERS OF INDIA
Done in Papier Mache Adorn the Postmaster
Generals Mantel.
UNIQUE METHODS OF THE HEATHEN

WASHINGTON, Nov. 1.-Mr. wanna
makers new postal museum will be organ
lied as quickly as space can be cleared for
it in the building of the Postoffice Depart
ment. In response to his requests, sent out
some months ago, many foreign govern.
ments have already forwarded to Washing
ton exhibits illustrating the methods
they adopt for carrying the mails. In
cluded in these consignments are costumes
of letter carriers, which in Europe are very
gorgeous and military; specimen letter
boxes, miniature mail vehicles, superb
photographs of foreign postoffices, statuettes
representing people engaged in transport
ing mail after various fashions, and ever so
many other interesting things.
There is a set of exquisitely executed
figures in papier mache from India which
now adorns the mantelpiece of the Post
master General. One OF them shows q
postal runner in British India, carrying
bag of letters and clad only in breech-
clout, with long spear in his hand from
which little bells dangle. The weapon is
for his defense against the wild animals
that infest the iungles through which
he is obliged to pass, while the
bells , are intended to frighten the
cobras, kraits and other venomous ser
pents.
Crossing Rivers in India.
Another statuette presents the same rum
ner in the act of padding across stream in
his customary manner, on raft made
simply of four big corked jars of e.rthen-
ware fastened together. Other mail-carriers
are seen riding on camels, which easily
travel so miles day, or in light carts
drawn by Indian bufaloes over rough roads
where horses could not 60. Austria has
sent particularly gorgeous exhibit, COM
prising everything imaginable, even to
postmark stamps, ink pads, and the written
music of the bugle calls by which the
postmen in that county announce their
arrival
England has promised costumes, and
full set of uniforms has already arrived
from Canada. Letter carriers in the British
possessions are all bowling official swells,
with winter caps and collars of real astra-
chan fur, leather 1eggings scarlet chanois
skin under-waistcoats for cold weather, and
gold buttons. With each suit comes a
bristle brush for keeping the buttons bright
Italy, Spain, Germany, France, Switzer-
land, Russia, Turkey and Persia have sent
contributions for the museum, and the
South American republics are disposed to
secure representation in this permanent
show of Mr.. Wanamaker. There is a
very fine postoffice museum of this sort now
in Berlin, on which great deal of money
has been spent.
Letters In Split Stick.
In Mr. Wanamaker's museum will also
be illustrated various primitive methods of
carrying the mails, as practiced in different
parts of the world now and in ancient times.
For example, there will be shown model
of the negro postal runner of South Africa,
who bears the letter entrusted to his care in
a split stick, which he plants upright in the
ground when he pauses to rest. He con-
sumes little food, but much tobacco, and
his endurance is wonderful. He wears no
clothes, but covers his naked body with oil,
rolling in the dust thereupon, so that the
flies will find him too unpleasant to bite
He carries the letter in the manner de-
scribed so that it will not get greasy, and,
while swimming with one hand across a
stream, he holds the missive out of the water
with the other.
Another type of postman shown will be
the messenger of Scriptural times, who con-
veyed royal messages by word of mouth. 1t
is incredible how swiftly information or or
ders could be transmitted in this way, every
man being obliged by law to Immediately
forsake his occupation and run and tell the
next person along the line of communica-
tion. The Bedouins practice this method
of conveying intelligence at the present day.
Methods of the Orient.
Japan has now as good postal system as
that of the United States, but 80 years ago
a letter addressed to anybody in that coun-
try usually bore only the name with no ad
dress whatever. The missive reached the
intended recipient from hand to hand.
Other models in the new museum will
represent the wonderful postal couriers who
carry royal messages in China. They are
the most rapid riders in the world, and have
been known to make the entire distance of
3, 200 miles from L'hasa, the capital of
Thibes, to Pekin in 25 days. They have
right to seize, by imperial requisition, any
horses on their routes, no matter to whom
the animals belong. One hundred miles a
day is about their average. They eat and
sleep but little, dismounting once in a while
to smoke little opium. Before leaving
his point of departure each such courier has
his dispatches placed in the lining of his
robe, which is sealed upon his person so
that he cannot open the garment during his
journey. The work of these Chinese cour-
iers reminds one somewhat of the famous
pony express that used to make the distance
of 1000 miles in ten days from ST. Joseph to
San Francisco, over the roughest sort of
country. Daring riders, each traversing
his allotted distance between two stations,
simply transferred the mail bags from
saddle to saddle, SO that the entire journey