Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1900-08-24
POSTAL CARD MANDATORY
TT IS NOW LOCATED AT PIEDMONT,
WEST VIRGINIA.
Only Forty Employees Needed to Work
the PIant-Present Average Out
put Over 1000, 600 Day.

From the Cincinnati Commercial Tribune.
The modest plant that turns out millions
of postal cards every month for Uncle Sam
is located in a little West Virginia noun
tain town. high UP In the Appalachian
range, not far from the border line Of Mary
land.
The town IL Piedmont, Mineral county,
w. Va, and here, the busy factory is at
work six days in the week. making the little
oblong sheets Of cardboard on which so
many messages Of all sorts and kinds are
written by all conditions Of people. Here
the cardboard is made from the fresh. sweet
spruce trees, here 1t Is cut into the requisite
Sizes and here the cards are printed. pack
ed and shipped. eventually finding their way
into every state. city. town and hamlet In
the country, and to Cuba, Porto Rico, Ha-
wall and the Philippine Islands.
The paper out OF which the postal cards
are manufactured is all made at the large
su!phite and paper mills located here, and
adjoining the postal works. This is the
largest pulp and paper mill in the United
States, and has branch plants at Davis, w.
Va: Covington. Va. and Tyrone, Pa
The United States postal card works were
located at Piedmont on December 1, 1897
having been transferred from Castleton, N
Y. Mr.. Albert Daggett of Brooklyn. N. Y.
has the contract for the term of four years
to manufacture all the various kinds of
postal cards required by the government.
Mr.. Daggett held the contract under the
administration Of President Harrison, but
lost 1t on the advent of the administration
Of President Cleveland.
The postal works proper are situated at
Luke, a suburb of Piedmont. on the banks
of the north branch of the Potomac river.
The postal card works are located In a
two-story f1re-proof brick building, with.
cement roof, and in which are patent auto
m n fir. wi fnYp Hoy ann
ply Of water at all times for fire protec-
ton. The building is not large-1OO by 60
feet.
The power to run the machinery is fur
nished by the plant Of the paper company,
whose large plant adtoins that Of the postal
works. The building is lighted by eiec
trictty and in winter Ia heated by steam.
Neither matches nor smoking of pipes or
cigars are allowed on the premises The
front door of the works is always under
lock and key. During the summer months
large lattice doors are used, with lock and
key during the day. A time-registering
clock Is used at night, which the watchmen
have to touch at regular intervals in their
rounds.
Maj. E. H. Shook, the United States
agent and inspector. takes the greatest
care and precaution to guard against theft.
fire and visitors interfering with either the
cards after or during the process of manu-
facture, and with the employees while at
work.
press room. casing room and a dry room
for the printed postal cards. There are
two presses in this room and each press
has capacity of 1920 Impressions an
hour
The size OF the sheets of paper used on
these presses is 80 by 80 inches, and each
sheet contains 30 postal cards ready to be
cut and packed when 1T comes from the
press. The dies used on these presses are
furnished by the government. Four men
work at the presses. The men all work
eight hours a day. One man Is used in the
casing part of this room to put together
the knocked-down pine boxes in which the
cards are packed for shipment. The boxes
are made Of pine grown in West Virginia
and shipped knocked DOWN to the con-
tractor. The boxes vary In sizes. holding
srectivey.
The largest shipment ever made from the
Piedmont works was on June 16, 1900,
when IT reached the large number Of a.
OO0OOO
The cards were shipped to various large
city post offices and to the subagencies.
The subpostal card agencies are located at
Cincinnati. st. Louis. Troy, New York and
known as distributing offices. where reaui-
sitions are filled on orders of the stamp
division Of the third assistant postmaster
general.
work this plant Is only forty. OF which
number twenty are males and twenty fe-
males-a small number. when the value
and volume Of this vast business are taken
work.
The postal cards for use in the Philip
pines are also manufactured at this plant,
and are like the domestic cards. but are
just below the vignette. 1t Ii the same
with the postal cards manufactured for
use in Cuba and Porto Rico. Those In use
in the Island of Hawaii are now the same
as the domestic cards.
The bun stock used in the manufacture
of all the cards Is made at Piedmont by
the paper company. out OF spruce wood. by
what IS technically known as the 'sulphite'
have been made from the fiber within two
days after the trees had been cut from the
virgin West Virginia forest.
Less than full car lots Of cards are
mont. and all are registered. This is also
the case with shipments for the fnsular
possessions. The full car lots are shipped.
to the larger post offices and to the sub
cards to the car. and they are valued at
$4,000 per car. Every car Is sealed with
a special seal by Inspector Shook. The
paper from which the cards are manufac-
tured must contain 50 per cent Of suiphite
spruce fiber, % per cent of soda chemical
poplar fiber bleached and 8 per cent OF
English clay; and all must be clean and
free from imperfections. calendered to .
both sides. suitable for writing on with ink
and pencil. and a uniform buff. The ten
Sile strength Is also tested and the cards
are finished in all other respects up to the
government standard A water finish to
the stock used in the manufacture Of pos
tai cards Is not permitted. The quality Of
ink and It's color (black) must also be up
to the government standard.
This vast business is let for the period Of
four years, by contract, and the govern
ment has resident official in charge, who
Is termed 1.-The United States postal card
agent and Inspector" The person now fill
ing that position is Maj E. H. Shook.
1t Is his duty to inspect and pass judg-
ment on all the postal card sheets before
printing: to furnish the transportation of
the cards for the contractor and to ship
the cards on official orders received by him
from the Postmaster General Mai Shook
also has personal supervision of the print
ing. cutting. boxing. casing and shipments
of the postal cards
The Mean Thing.
From the Chi ago Post.