San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1895-08-11
DIFFICULT MAIL CARRYING.
An Interesting Branch of the United
states Postal Service.

An Interesting Branch of the United
states Postal Service.
Few people east of the Mississippi
who have not been in the far west can
have any real idea of the manner of
delivering the mails to the frontier
mining camps in midwinter, or of how
late the snow lasts on some slopes and
valleys. No one needs be told that
carrying the mail over the Rocky noun
tain ranges, when the snow is five feet
deep on the level and fifteen feet deep
In drifts, is most perilous undertake
ing.
"The mountain mail carriers" said
Mr.. John Palmer, an engineer in a
Montana mine, visiting his home in
New York city, 'are race of athletes.
No man, unless he had an iron consti-
tuition, could endure the exposures and
hardships of climbing the mountain
peaks loaded down with heavy mail
sack. This has been a severe winter
for these mountain carriers, and sew
eral poor fellows have lost their lives
in the service.
1.-THE people who live in the frontier
mining camps of Colorado, Idaho,
Utah and Montana have been showed
in for the past three months They
are as much out of civilization as if
they lived in Alaska. Nevertheless,
these people want their letters and pa
pers the same as do the people of our
towns and cities. The post Office de-
partment is enterprising, and 1t under
takes to give them an irregular mail
service.
''This branch of the postal service is
called the 'snowshoe mail, because the
mountain carriers travel on snowshoes.
There are forty or fifty of these mail
carriers, who are not afraid to brave
the dangers. 1t is no easy task to climb
the steep mountain sides in summer
time, but how much more difficult in
snowy weather, when the trails are
obscure and misleading, when the snow
is four and five feet deep on the level,
when the thermometer is below the
zero mark, when the snow and ice cover
dangerous places, when a misstep
would send the carrier over the preci-
pice!
''Of course the mountain mail car
riers take their lives in their hands
every hour of their journey. The first
thing they do is to provide themselves
with good warm underwear and cloth
ing. Some of them buy silk under
garments, stockings and gloves. Their
clothing may look rough, but 1t Ia
strong and comfortable.
when the mountain mail carrier Is
ready to start on his perilous journey,
there is usually group of friends and
acquaintance to give him a 'send-of.
Some of the people have verbal mes
sages for him to deliver.
Take good care of yourself, jim
says one friend.
Hope you have good time says
another, half jokingly.
"'Tell Al Jones I'll be over in the
spring, exclaims third individual.
with these and other messages
ringing in his ears the carrier on snow
shoes starts on his journey over the
mountains. He has the mail sack,
usually No. size, strapped to his
back. He also carries long guiding
pole. The wonder to me is how these
mail carriers ever find their way over
the ranges, and how they manage to
keep on the right trails. Yet some Of
them know the peaks and passes just
as Familiarity as the city carriers know
the streets and houses.
THE critical period of the journey
comes during snowstorm. Then the
carrier is liable to lose the trail, but
with compass in hand he gets his bear
ings All day long the travelling is
slow and tedious, and at times the
man is almost ready to sink down ex-
hausted. Night comes on, and the
heavy weight Of the mail sack begins
to tell on his strength. His safety lies
in finding shelter in some friendly
cleft in the rocks The mercury is
down, perhaps, to ten degrees below
zero. usually he will dig bed in
the snow, but he is afraid often to fall
asleep, lest he never wake up on the
morrow.
"And so, day after day, the snow
shoe mail carrier picks his way over
the mountain ranges. He must be as
sure-footed and agile as a channels
hunter. He must have steady and
strong nerves. He must be watchful,
cautious and careful every minute of
the day and night. Danger turks on
every side of him.
when the snow is covered with a
hard crust the carrier finds TRAVELLING
much easier. You should see an old, ex-
perienced carrier slide down the
mountain side on his snowshoes. 1t is
like toboggan slide. Faster and
faster the carrier rushes along, until
he reaches the bottom, where he
tumbles, heels over head, into the
snow bank. 1t looks easy to glide down
on the snow crust, but unless you have
had experience you don't want to try
!, o. 4.