The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1900-08-31
TIE WOi,Ll,',, go. .-...s.
How Mail Matter is Handled In
Many Countries.

The postal delivery service of the
world Is one Of the wonders of nine
teenth century achievements in governs
ment, and of the armies that comprise
its complicated human machinery the
postman is perhaps the most interest,"
Ing personality. The worlds postmen
may be divided into two clasfses-first.
the well-uniformed ones who make
the house to house distributions In the
cities; second, the long-distance bear
ers Of mail packs who serve communi-
ties remote from transportation high
ways. The latter are fewer in num-
bers. but more picturesquely Interest,"
ing. In the United States alone many
types Of these athletic and intrepid let
ter carriers who served the advancing
lines of civilization across the conti-
nent, almost has disappeared. 10 spots
Of the Sierras and Rockies a few of
the American grimpeur postmen re-
main, and occasionally Of winter you
read Of one of them perishing in the
avalanche whose path he has crossed
perhaps thousand times.
In the silver mining districts these
tall, powerful and handsome snowshoe
postmen were quite numerous fifteen
and twenty years ago.
WONDERFUL FEATS OF STRENGTH
On Norwegian shoes some among
them have been known to pack in a
day $50 pounds Of mail, ascending alti>
$500 feet to the bleak objectless alti-
tudes Of 10000 and $4,000 feet and down
again to 1000 or 5000 on the other
side. AS the distance travelled would
not exceed thirty miles 1t may be imag-
man has to climb and slide. In the
summer, with the disappearance of
snow he usually has q regular zigzag
trail.
The newest border postman Of Ameri-
can type is the one who follows the
Eskimo mail car Of the polar circle. his
dogs the only animate beings he sees
through the great stretches of ice and
snow.
Many years ago, after the navigation
of the Colorado river by fiatboats had
developed considerable comemrce, an
old postman's service was established
particularly for the benefit of the army
attachments stationed along the river.
The mail was brought to the mouth of
the river on the regular steamships. By
river-boat 1t was three days to Fort
Yuma, the first point of settlement in
side the American line.
THE COCoPAH CARRIERS.
Big Cocopah bucks. built like OIym-
plan prize-takers, were the postmen or
ganized to defeat the steamboats,. The
distance to Fort Yuma, the first relay
on the river over the route. was fifty
miles by trail over the Sonora desert,
where blistering, strangling simoons
were of common occurrence in the sum-
mer months. The heat at all times on
this desert stretch is tropical. yet the
Cocopah postman rarely failed to trot
the distance in day with twenty-five
pounds of mail, thus beating the steam
boat two days. The river trip was
heightened by the incredible curves Of
the channel No white man ever ven-
tured to take the Cocopah postman's
contract, though it represented a goodly
sum Of money.
In some respects the Cocopah post
man of the Colorado desert. who made
his astonishing trip only at infrequent
intervals and striped to his coper-tan-
roxs bydo p,lth h}o hoir ,no<tod m tho
top of his head in baked mud, is resem-
bled by one of the picturesque post
men Of the British empire. This is the
native Of Natal. Ordinarily he does not
cumber himself with clothes, although
the government gives him military
great coat and cape. About 40 Of these
runners are employed on routes where
the use of mail carts is not Justified.
One hundred miles a week 10 the MAXI
mum. The runer's load ranges in weight
from forty to sixty pounds; for dis
tances less than forty miles he IL re-
quired to average four miles an hour.
and three miles when the distance is
greater. He Is honest. lives on por-
ridge. and In addition to $3.50 allow
ance monthly for rations. he receives
IS pay.
An add method Of carrying the mail is
in vogue among the island natives Of
Coromandel. Waterproof bags are
placed in kind Of catamaran, stride
which the postman has to sit. while he
at the same time navigates the mail
transport and battles with sharks.
Peasants carry the mails through
the jungles Of India, and across swollen
or torrential streams the mail bags
are pulled on slung ropes. The slowest
postmen are In Corea. They serve with
OK carts. 1t Is insisted. however. that
the slowest delivery Is in Turkey. There
sacks containing the letters Of the peo-
pie often lie for weeks at . distribu-
tion ONCE. until the local cadl finds
It convenient to hand them over to the
lowest bidder who will undertake to de-
liver them within q specified time to the
local cadi OF the town for which they
are destined. Almost without exception
these delivery contracts are violated By
the vagabond postmen. who loiter along
Visiting relatives.
HOW JAPANESE MAIL Is CARRIED.
The coolies postmen Of Japan are
counted among the spsedtest and carry