The Newberry herald and news. (Newberry, S.C.) 1884-1903, 1897-04-30
ARP ON HIS MAIL
TELLS OF THE TIME
WHEN POSTAGE WAS TWO
BITS u LETTER.
lie IL asked many Quest -l,artow Man
Shows tho Pleasure There liz In Cor
rcsponicncc with OId Friends.

| Shows tho Pleasure There In In u Cor
rcsp"ndcncc with Old Friends.
There is perhaps no invention Oh
contrivanco that has brought more
comfort to mankind than that of lot,
tors and their easy transmission by
modern postal lsorvico. How wondcr-
fully choap they arc and how swiftly
they como and 60! Only 2 cents to
the utmost limit of tho United States,
say, 1000 miles, and only 5 cents to
be carried across tho ocean. 1t takes
only 2 cents to carry a letter to tho
City Of Mexico, but it takes S cents
to bring one back.
My wife says that is hard on Carl,
for besides his weekly lottor to us,
he has many friends, and tho girl no
left behind him, and his postage is
quito tax. Sho thinks ought to
write to President Diaz and Mr.. Nc
Kinley and demand reciprocity, just
for Carrs sake, but I compromised
with her by promising to incloso n
dime in every letter l wrote to tho
boy. In almost every mail that
comes she is on til . lookout for a let
tor from somo Of tho absent ones,
and whom she gets ono she reads it
two or thrcc timos and files it away
on her side Of the room. The morn
ing and the evening mail has be-
come rs important IN event in tho
routine Of our daily life rs our daily
mculs. 1t is an event that has grown
Oh us and become Indispensable
Time was when neither sho nor
received letter month, for sho
had no lover but me, and | had mono
but her and our postal system was
darllcy boy. 1t was liko that of
Ieb Vance, who received noto
from some fashionable woman in
Washington with tho mysterious
letters, "R. S. Y. p" endorsed on
it, and when he answered it he put
on one cornor rs. b. A. N.," just
to keep up with society, ho said.
When sho afterwards asked for an
explanation, he smiled and said: "Oh,
they stood for Sent by niggcr."
| romombel when tho postage had
to be paid at tho last end Of tho line
by the person who received it, and
it was rs conts If it camo 500 miles.
If less than that, but from out tho
state, it was IS 81 cents, and if
within tho state i was IL 1.2 cents.
We had no decimal currency then,
but wo had tho scvcn ponce az 2
cents) and tho thrip (G Ii conts) and
they were worn to tho quick from
constant use. Nothing told their
value except their size. We received
tho great United States mail twice a
week and tho footing Of tho stage
drivers horn as he rose to the brow of
tho distant hill aroused all the pco
plo OF the little villa, re, and most Of
them gathered at the postotlico to
hear tho news. Perhaps there wcro
as many rs twenty weekly papers
taken in the town, but none Of them
made mention Of murders or suicides,
or lynching or olopoments, or base.
ball or football, or bicycle races or
the fashions, CT towards for guessing
advertisements Of celery compound, ,
or photographs of mon or women or
babies, or tho arrival Of anybody less
than apresident or governor. But
in our state papers there wero some
little pictures or cuts Of hasty de-
partures -runaways-and all were
uniformly advertised: "kan away
from the subsclbcr, my boy Dick, etc. :,
and I will give $40 reward for his
apprehension"
But now tho letters -ah, tho lottcrs
that come every day! Besides tho
family letters from kith and kin, thoro
are scores from good people who arc
working for church or charity, y.
want information about Florida or
Mexico. Very often am comfortcd
with compliments which / lovo to re-
ceive, and very often got good,
long letter from somc old time Gcor-
gian who for alf century has been
living in Texas or Arkansas, or some
whore in the great west. Itpleasos
me to reply to all and make tho best
4