The state republican. (Jefferson City, Mo.) 1871-1896, 1894-07-05
NAMES OF POSTOFFTCES.
Washington Correspondence OF the Glob
Democrni.

undertaken n reform. He wants
short names for new post offices
Some of Mr.. Bissell's predecessors
attempted reforms in the direction oil
post office nomenclature, with rather
curious results. When the residents
of a new town in Missouri sent in
their application for a post Office
several years ago the name they
suggested was not satisfactory to the
department for some reason.
''Select another name," wrote the
postmaster general; "%something not
so common, something peculiar"
"All right" the applicants replied,
''call il Peculiar And the mail
bag has been going to peculiar,
Cass county, No." ever since.
If MIR. Bissell doesn't have a run
on "Short' post offices during the
coming months, it will be because
the American sense of humor is
temporarily short. There are already
three Shorts in the United States.
There are a Short Beach and a
Shortburgh, four Short creeks, one
Shorter and a Shorterville. Then we
have Short Falls, Short Hills, Shortly,
Short Mountain and Short OF.
North Carolina contributes the last
mentioned. But variety in short
combinations is not exhausted.
Claims have been allowed on Shorts
creek, two Shortsvilles, a Short Tract
and a Shortville.
Mr.. Bissell says one syllable names
will be preferred hereafter. The
post office department has accumu
lated quite q collection of monosyl-
Liable offices. 1t has two Arks,
eighteen Baths, five plain Bays, with
numerous combinations like Bay City,
Bay Center and the like; seven Bells,
two Balls and two Ball Plays.
Indiana has a town named B; it is
in Tippecanoe county. Tennessee
has named Il post office A. b. G. One
hundred and twenty combinations
have been made with Big, ranging
from Big Bar to Big Woods, with
such originality shown as Big Bug in
Arizona and Big Patch in Wisconsin.
Eleven Bissells leave no room for
further honors to the postmaster gen
eral. Ten Bellefontaines are spelled
in almost as many ,iiferent ways.
The Tennesseans seem to be fertile in
the selection of unique names. They
have got Il Y u post office, 4 Yum
Yum, an Ipe, only N Jackson,
strange to tell a Let, an All, an Andy,
a Ben, n Bob, a Boy, a Bud, a Cute,
an Ego, a Gabe, a Gath, a Ho, a Ken,
a Loo, a Nancy, a Notime, a Number
One, a Seq, a Sill, a Tang, a Tut, two
Wings, a Zach.
Missouri runs somewhat to syno.
nyms. She has a Peculiar and the
next thing to it, an Odd. She has 8
Freedom and a Libertyville. Missouri
has her share of homely names O
post offices, such as Pulltight, Dutch.
town, Dudenville, Jimtown, Drynob
Ebenezer. Combinations with Lon,
, seem to be popular in the state
) There are Lone Elm, Lone Jack
Lone Dell, Lone Oak, Lone Spring
Lone Star and Lone Tree. TIL,
present congressional delegation hai
been well remembered. Missouri
has post offices called Cockrell anC
Vest, also Dockery, Burnes, Joy
Cobb, Fyan, Hatch, Hall, Tarsney
Bland. Missouri has a Grover il
one county and a Cleveland in
another. She has a Gresham, also
an Ingalls,.
Who but a printer could have
chosen for Missouri post Offices sucl
names as jeff and Stet9 Consider
the phase of human nature which
prompted the selection of Bragga
docio as a post office address. Prohi-
bition is neighbor to Rolling Home,
Paradise is not far from Tribulation
Missouri has a Ni~shnabotna, a Cock
rum, a Nirvana, a Nixa, a Lupus, al
Arnica, Il Job, a Phlegeton, a Black
Jack and a Blooming Rose.
Adam is in Georgia, Eve is in
Kentucky, Cain in Kansas, Abel in
Alabama. A letter addressed &c
Canaan may go to sixteen states
before it finds its destination.
The long roll of post offices contains
a greater variety of saints than the
calendar. Virginia has a st. Tam
many's. st. Ann, st. Anne, st. Anna,
ST. Annie, st. AIMS are all posi-
offices. One st. 10, five st. Joef
and eighteen st. Josephs attest the
popularity of that saint and the
irreverence of his latter day ad
mirers. In Alabama there is 6
Saints Store, and in Mississippi
there is a Saints Rest.
Texas and Iowa have New Yorks
Cincinnati is found in six states
There are four Chicagos and sever
Philadelphia. st. Louis is found il
Michigan and Montana as well as il
Missouri.
Center is the name Of a post Office
in twenty-five states. The Center
towns, Centervilles and other comb
nations with Center number 1877.
Mr.. Bissell has recently re
fused to appapt ttTha White Gity,