The St. Johns herald., 1893-12-07


 state department, Samuel Gracey, United States consul at Foochoo, China, tells how the mail is carried in the ''fowery kingdom" China has not yet established government post offices or postal system for the masses of the people, with all her adoption of modern ways, but private enterprise is depended upon to render communica- ton easy between various parts of the empire This private transmission of mail is conducted through what are called letter shops" No stamps are used, but the ''chop' or sign of the keeper of the '1etter shop" is always placed upon the envelope.
 In this country when the govern ment wishes to send a communication it incloses it in an envelope marked official or ''public-free" and it goes through the mail as other letters ex- cept that no postage is paid. In China imperial edicts and other official con- munications are carried from city to city and province to province by couri- CTS. Generally they make the trip afoot, but in case of great haste they are provided with horses at convenient relay stations. Official letters or dis patches are thus conveyed in cases of emergency two hundred or two hun dred and fifty miles a day. In districts where transmission of official com munications is frequent each station master is required to keep on hand from ten to twenty horses or donkeys, and the local representative of the government is held responsible for all delays that occur. These official couri- CTS, who correspond to our star route mail carriers are not allowed to carry private dispatches or letters, their op- erations being restricted to the trans mission of government communica- tions.
 The public is served by the '1etter shops, a carrier system organized by private enterprise transmitting the mail from one station to another. Con- sul Gracey says at the treaty ports the letter shops are used by natives only, but in the interior, or at places not reached by the foreign postal arrange ment, they are employed by foreign CTS as well, though chiefly by mission aries. "These speak well of the sys- tenn for its security" he says, but they do not consider it all that could be desired in respect to quickness of delivery. It somewhat resembles our express business, as it transmits par cells of moderate size and weight It is said to possess two decided advantages over our western system-insurance against loss and monthly settlement of accounts. All the letters and parcels to be sent may be registered and in- sured."
 Before a letter is mailed or delivered to the carrier its contents are displayed, and the keeper of the letter shop then signs his ''chop," or sign, so that its point of origin may be determined. Parcelsmay be transmitted in the same manner, the charge for carrying being a percentage of their declared value. The shopkeeper gives receipt for the letter or package, and he thus becomes responsible for it's safe delivery or it's return to the sender, with seal un- broken. In some parts of the empire, the consul says, about two-thirds of the expense of transmission is paid by the sender, the remainder being collected from the receiver. Thus the shop is secured against entire loss from transient customers and the sender has some guarantee that his letter will be conveyed with dispatch. Native merchants who are regular customers keep an open account with the shop and make their settlements monthly.
 In some of the larger Gties and towns the letter shops are numerous, but in many remote villages there are none. In Shanghai there are nearly two hundred. Some of the shops em- ploy solicitors who go from house to house working up trade, competition in many cities being strong. In the northern provinces the shopkeepers initiate the government and employ system of mounted carriers. Horses or donkeys are used, the relays being about ten miles apart Each carrier or menssenger is intrusted with seventy . or eighty pounds of mail matter, and travels about five miles an hour-much slower than the government carriers. For short distances and in central and southern China the messenger travels on foot at rapid gait. When the mes senger arrives at a station he hands over the mail to a fresh carrier. He starts at once," says Consul Gracey, mo matter what may be the hour of the day or night, and regardless of winds, rain, heat or cold, he continues the journey until he, too, has complet- ed his service and handed the parcel over to a third messenger, and thus it reaches its destination"
 This pony express. like that which was in use across the western plains of the United States forty years ago, is sometimes subject to interruption by highwaymcn, but the Chinese have a way of compromising such villainy and thus protecting their postal service. The robber bands of each district col lect blacl1mail from the shopkcepers, and for regular sums paid they not only do not molest the messengers