The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1898-03-13

This curious numerical uniformity Is not
peculiar to the dead letters in general, but
extends to the particular kinds of letters
and to their contents. so that the appraxi-
mate number of photographs or any other
article that will be received in the dead
letter office within a certain time can be
predicted with almost as much certainty
as that of an astronomer foretelling the
movements of the heavenly bodies. So we'll
recognized has this become that it is used
as a check upon the clerks who open the
letters, and who are, therefore, RESPONSE
BILE for the money they may contain. The
amount of cash found in unclaimed letters
is between $4,000 and $40. 600 a year. ard
as the opening of the letters Is intrusted
to ten men, the amount received by each
is in the neighborhood of $500 a month
IT, therefore, there should be any mark
ed falling off from this sum in the returns
made by any clerk 1t would be presump-
tive evidence of theft against him-a cir
cumstance which few years since led to
the suspicion, watching and conviction of
one of these clerks, who had not been
aware of the existence of this wonderful
detective power.
Interesting and significant as these facts
may be, the work done by the chro-
graphic expert is as important as, a, d
more surprising than any other feature
of the dead letter office. 1t is, perhaps
unfair to say that her remarkable ability
Is due wholly to her wonderful intultional
faculty, for this would avail her little We're
it not coupled with an exceptional intellect.
a perfect memory and an education cf
the highest and most comprehensive char
acter, including the mastery of many
languages and a remarkable knowledge of
geography.
Her mind is an inexhaustible storehouse
of information, filled with odds and ends
Of all sorts of facts. No scrap of informal
ton however trivial, that comes within
the range of her great powers of obserya-
ton, is overlooked or thrown aside, for ex-
perience has taught her that every item
of knowledge is of service IN her compre-
hensive work.
The hundreds of letters daily handled
by Mrs. Collins and her trained assistants
are not dead letters. but contradistinguish-
ed by the term Give letters, for they are
not such as have been unclaimed, but are
simply wanting in proper address, which
il is the office of Mrs Collins department
to supply, without opening the letters
Mrs. Collins is sometimes called upon not
only to decipher the scrawls on the en-
velope, but to supply the name of the
town, which the correspondent has omit
ted The omission of < the name of the
postoffice is a very common error; but
when the street and number are given the
task of filling in the name of the place
is quickly accomplished; for though
streets of the same name occur in hum
dreds of towns. experience and intuition
combine to discover the intended postof-
flee.
Thousands of letters, however, do not
afford so much of a clue, but bear simply
the name of the person addressed and the
state in which he lives, while others omit
even the state; in spite of which omis-
sions they are commonly sent to their
proper destinations. One letter mailed in
Washington and addressed simply to "W.
II. Coffin" was sent by Mrs Collins 70
SO Bay street, Boston. Her knowledge of
names and their aracteristlcs told her
that Coffin was a common name in Massa-
chusetts; and the Boston directory told
her the rest. In like manner, letter bear
ing nothing more than the name REV
A. Poude" and the postmark of New York
city. was forwarded to San Francisco and
delivered. Perhaps the most remarkable
instance of Mrs. Collins skill in cases of
this particular kind, was that i'm which
she correctly supplied the name and ad-
dress on a letter that was marked with
nothing more definite than the simple SUI
REV. f. H. F." This was
forwarded to the Rev: F. II. Farrar.
Cleveland, N. y, for whom, as the event
proved. il was intended.
Another large class of letters are those
sent by individuals with whom Mrs Col
Inns is obliged to put herself en- rapport.
IN order to divine their intentions and thus
rectify the errors resulting from their
alteration. Such letters are those
in which the name of the postoffice is in