The Press., 1898-08-25

all over the world today. that there ever could have been time when there were no postofi1ces, no letter carrier, no mail facilities at all
 But, of course, there had to be some means of communication even ill the earliest ages, though these were confined for centuries to emperors and kings and other great rulers. The emperors of Egypt, of Persia, of Assyria and of Rome held many lesser kings and satraps as their vassals. With these it was nec- essary to communicate with certainty and regularity, and therefore couriers were employed to carry dispatches and provinces
 Of course no one man or one horse could traverse the whole route. so sta tions were established along the roads at certain intervals, where couricrs were always in readiness to relieve weary brothers. and carry on the dispatches with uniform speed. These stations were called "posts," from the Latin word positum-fxed or placed-whence comes the name of our modern postal system.
 In the Old Testament are frequent references to the posts. In II Chronicles you will find, "So the posts went with the letters" and "So the posts passed from city to city" In Esther also and in Job and Jeremiah you will find other allusions to the posts. But they were never for the use of the common people.
 The Roman Emperor Augustus was the first to establish system of pests suggestive of the present system. You have heard the saying. "All roads lead to Rome" This was the origin of it: From Rome as a center post roads were built, called royal highways, extend ing all over Europe. < After the decline of the Roman empire these post roads were abandoned by degrees. and during the dark ages they almost entirely dis appeared.
 In the thirteenth and fourteenth cen- turies, however, their need began to be 90 strongly felt that sposts between diff ferent parts of the same country were established, and soon these were extend ed into other countries These posts were carried first by foot runners and then @ little later by men on horseback.
 It was not long, though. before the post privilege was extended, and 1t was found impossible for horseback riders to carry the increasing mail, so wheeled conveyances were provided, and the next step was for these conveyances to carry passengers as we'll as the mail.
 And thus from the post was evolved the mail coach, What this meant to our hitherto shut In ancestors it is hard for us of the present day to realize even G.s D,,A e << &L4< &1 evolution of the public post and the mail coach did more than any other one thing to hasten civilization.
 In the reign of the Emperor Freder- ick III, Francis von Laxis. whose grand father is said to have established a post al service across the Tyrol and Styria. entered the service of the house of Haps- burg and became the founder of the modern postal system. Through Won Laxis the emperor established regular posts throughout his kingdom between the years LAO and 1493, and at the be- ginning of the sixteenth century the Austrian post became the international post of the Hapsburg dynasty.
 In France the University of Paris or ganized postal service in the thirteenth century which fourished until 1719. In some parts of Europe there were brother hoods and mercantile guilds which es. tablished posts and postof6oes subject to the government
 In England, in 1858, Rowland Hill started 8 private post, but Cromwell a heavy hand came down on the enter. prise. and the men who carried the let. ters were trampled down and killed by his soldiers. Later on Mr. Hill came to the front again, instituted many re- forms in the service, and at last gave to England real and effective postal serv- ice. Louis XI of France founded 8 postal system in l464, which was greatly inn proved by Charles Tx in 1865.
 But 1t was not alone the Christian nations that felt the need of 8 postal service. When the Spaniards invaded South America, they found a regular system of posts in operation. so that the news of their landing was carried to the inca with incredible swiftness, the post men being runners, who carried around their waists knotted cords, a code of sig nals or sign writing.
 Coming down to our own country, suppose we take 8 peep at the mail methods in vogue in its earlier days Let us take as a type the postal service between Boston and New York, where, in 1762, post was established ito zoe monthly" Post riders. starting at the same hour from each end of the route carried the mails Leaving on Monday morning, they met and exchanged bags at Saybrook, Conn. on the following Saturday. Then each man returned to his starting point. which. of course. took nearly another week.
 It was Benjamin Franklin that, in 1775. suggested the plan for postal service on which our present system is founded. In the early days of this sys- tenn rates were charged that seem out rageous to us of the present day-be- tween Boston and New York, 1SA cents. and 25 cents for points beyond Of course this led to swindling the gov ernmept and the smuggling of letters. Private parties carried mail secretly at lower rates. and in 1889 Harnden's ex- press entered the field, carrying letters concealed in bundles and other packages at less than legal rates
 But as soon as the government low cred its charges all these smugglers dropped out of the race. There was no money in it then. .-Philadelphia Times
 -.~iaed the Sale.
 A young lady from the city was try ing her hand as an amateur saleswoman in plantation store one morning last week when an old colored woman, gor- geously arrayed in her Sunday clothes, entered the store and. pointing to bot tie of German cologne on one of the highest shelves, asked:
 "What dat?''