, 1898-07-19
THE CHAIN LETTER
HOW A YOUNG WOMAN IN NEW
YORK STARTED A BIG
BUSINESS.
The Postoffice at Babylon, Long Island,
Flooded With Letters-Fifteen
Thousand Answers Received
Startling Results Obtained in
Carrying Out the Idea.


The following account Of one young
experience in starting a chain
letter. for the benefit CT the Red Cross
society's work will he of interest to
many Laramie people who have re-
ceiyed missiyes of n like character.
The article is taken from the New York
Sun Of a recent date:
Four weeks ago Miss Natalie Schenck
of Babvlon 7, started an endless
chain" of letters tn raise money for the
Ice Plant auxiliary of the N~ational Red
Cross society. As n resuit Postmaster
Dowden and Chief IF Police Weeks of
that VILLAGE are in desnair and Miss
Schenck and her mother have asked the
Sun IN announce that they wish the
chain broken and the indux of letters
and money Tn cease
Miss Schenck is y vaors old She
took a preat interest i, no war and de-
cided IN holm the Red Cross movement
Her mother is a cousin NJ Mrs August
ReImont and during the summer. they
lived with Mrs Schenck's brother Mr.
Matthew Morgan, 1t was from Mr..
Norpan,s iho,se that Miss Schenck
wrote tn a umher of her friends asking
each of them to send her 10 cents and
IN write IN four of their friends with
no samo reoues, The letter sart ont
was n fo,,ows.
"The ice plant auxiliary in connec-
tion with the National Red Cross. he
ing in need of money tn sunnlv the am
bu,ance sbins a chain has hepn FORM
cd IN co,,ect some and if Won IN re-
recoivinp this will, mako four comics
and send them TO four of your friends
vou will greatly helm the wounded SOL
diers Whom Won have made four
comics nlease return this letter tn Miss
Natalie Schenck. Babylon. Long
Island with 10 cents enclosed The
number starts at one and ends at one
hundred so that the nerson receiving
the latter number will send 10 cents to
Miss Schenck. same address. without
making comics. Please number the head
of each conv and make them exactly
like this one. only number the next
highest number and sign your name
and address to each copy. Please make
u, dplav in sanding ont co,ies and
above all. do not break the Chain that
means so much to our brave soldiers on
land and sea-"
Within three DAYS Miss Schenck had
received three or four The
next day the number was slightly in
creased Within n week Postmaster
Dowden noticed that she was getting a
hundred letters a day.
"Tbat's a good many." said POST
master Dowden Yesterday. but all of
a sudden things took a big jump. The
postofice was by Miss
Schenck's letters. | had to hire an ex-
ira clerk. and this morning over g 800
letters came to her in one mail. If this
thing doesn't stop I'll have. TO hire a
lot more clerks. and there is no tell.
ing how far it will 60"
Then Postmaster Dowden beuan re-
ceiving letters of inquiry asking if Miss
Schenck was really collecting money
for the Red Cross, or if it was a swim
die.
They inclosed STAMPS" said the
postmaster mournfully, 80 | had to an
swer them. l am not Obliged to answer
letters of inquiry, but if | don't. then
some kicker writes to Washington that
l am keeping their stamps. Why, I've
sent hundreds of nswer to inquiries,
simply taking their letters and in
dorsirg them. This is o. X"
When Chief of Police Weeks gets
angry he shows it as he walks through
the streets by switching ~viciously with
his light rattan ane at every weed he
passes. There is hardly a weed left in
Babylon. Chief Weeks has been work
ing overtime answering letters about
Miss SChenck's Chain" until his pa
thence is exhausted. The Sun has also
received a number of letters, of which
the following is a sample:
Boston, July 8, 1898.
ITO the Editor of the Sun:
Sir: l inclose a copy OF a chain let