Oxford Democrat. [volume] (Paris, Me.) 1833-1933, 1898-06-14
OFFICIAL PAUL PRYS.
POSTAL SNEAK THIEVES OF THE
FRENCH GOVERNMENT.

FRENCH GOVERNMENT.
Delicate Methods Employed BY Them In
Opening LsttsFs-with . Little Patience
They Ovsreens Gum, Sealing was Or
Metal Fastener.
The incident which occurred In the
French chamber concerning the viola
ton Of the secrecy Of letter addressed
to NJ. Delcasse by high official Of the
ministry Of marine has stirred the pub
lie, which is surprised that such pro-
ceedings take place under the third re-
public. Created in 1880, the cabinet
noir was a permanent Office under
Louis Philippe and Napoleon III, who
used and abused it in order to learn the
political secrets Of their opponents. II
was generally believed by the public
that the Office had long been suppressed
by the present government But after
the incident mentioned those who still
believe in the secrecy Of the post, Of the
telegraph or Of the telephone exhibit an
incredible credulity which il extremely
rare mt this I'm de steele. Those who
IRE so imprudent as to write their in
most thoughts concerning any politician
in power will he wise no longer to i'm
agine that letter which arrives Mt Its
destination apparently unopened has
not been read by third party. As is
well known, IL is also easy for IN Off.
cial to learn the secrets OF the telephone
by applying his ear to the receivers at
the central Office. and by 30 doing to
intercept phrases which are both in
structive and amusing. 1t now appears
that the postofiice officials also give
themselves up to che delicate pleasure
Of satisfying their curiosity.
They employ 20 different methods in
order to assuage their professional in
auisitiveness II an envelope Is closed
in the ordinary manner by thin layer
of gum. they have the choice OF two
systems-when the paper Is tough and
strong they slip with great precaution
q very thin Int not cutting blade be
tween the two gummed parts, and with
a little practice they arc soon able to
separate the paper without any tear;
when the envelope is thin and brit
tie they open it by the primitive and
homely means Of steam. These proceed
ings are extremely simple, and the cor
respondsnoe Of many masters and mis-.
tresses has often been slyly treated in
the same way by an inquisitive domes-
tic. This industry requires very little
skill, and the only capital necessary Is
q small amount Of patience. The more
suspicious individuals fasten their let
tiers with sealing wax and imagine that
they are consequently perfectly safe
from any surreptitious attack. The
officials Of the cabinet noir, however.
are not so easily defeated. BY judi.
ciously bending and twisting the part
Of the paper surrounding the seal they
gradually detacb the latter which final
ly remains unbroken in their hands with
n very thin layer Of paper adhering to
IL. After examining the contents Of the
letter they replace the seal intact Mt the
exact place which IL previously occu.
pied, and both the sender and receiver
of ,ne letter remain in blissful igno-
rance Of their maneuvers.
Other correspondents, even more sus
picious. are not satisfied with gum and
wax, but supplement- them by small
20 k,n - fafa
its inventor to render any tampering
with letter impossible. This, although
its efficacy is far from that promised BY
the sra,ioners, certainly complexities the
work o. the intruding official. He rises
60 the circumstance. however, and after
carefully removing the stamp and max
irg cross cut Oh tho square from
which IL has been removed he intro
duces small steel instrument with q
special hook at the extremity. This
hook grips corner Of the letter. and by
carefully twisting the sheet round the
stem Of the instrument ii can be- finally
extracted without any apparent injury.
II by chance the note paper Is refractory
and cannot be- twisted owing to its stout.
ness. the operator cuts the entire length
Of one side Of the envelope. The con.
tents are easily obtained In this man
ner, but the reclosing Of the envelope
requires much delicacy Of workmanship
and is, in fact, almost worthy OF an
artist About millimeter Of each OF
the cut edges is carefully folded inward,
gummed aud pressed together until dry.
This phase Of the work, although rather
difficult to o novice. il soon acquired by
practice.
There are many other tricks employ
ed, some Of which speak volumes for
human ingenuity. It sometimes hap.
pens. nevertheless. that letter battles
all the skill and experience Of the entire
department. In that case their means
are rough and ready-they suppress IL
altogether. The exterior appearance Of
the letter addressed to NJ. Delcasse be-
trayed the work Of the Cabinet Noir
This proves not lack Of skill Of those in
trusted with such an important but un-
derhand duty. but simply negligence. -
London Globe.