The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-12-29

The development of the means of COM
munication with the distant parts of the
world is a fair indicat ton of the prog eSs
of civilization in any country. This is
the record of history and is daily being
proved true. A century or two ago the
only way in which it was possible to
carry on communication with people who
lived in distant parts of the country was
by means of posts carried by stage or
on horseback, and which were, to say the
least, slow and expensive. Then as the
country developed, the mails were car
ried in way so as to make them more
rapid. Civilization and Industrial devel
opment increased and the means OF COM
munication were improved. The tele-
graph and the telephone We're invented
and put in use, as were the fast mail
trains that dash across the country, COW
ering in the course of an hour as much
space as would have taken Ben Frank
lin with his lightning post two days to
cover. Such is the experience of every
nation, and it is safe to say that the
history of the development of the mail
service is a fair Indication Of the devcl
opment of the land.
There was time in Minnesota when
the means of communication with the
outer world came far from being as sat
isfactory as they are now. That was
when the white man first came to mingle
with the Indians and to claim the land
from it's wild and uncultivated state. For
several years the only mails that came
to the little settlement which has since
grown into the prosperous city of st.
Paul was that which was brought by tie
soldiers twice each year when they came
with supplies to Fort Smelling from
Prairie du Chen. These mails were
brought UP the river and were very
small and inconsiderable. In fact, the
government did not consider them to be
mails at ALL and no one was authorized
to carry them. They were simply
brought along by the soldiers as an &C
commodation to those who were living
near Fort Smelling. For several years
this was the only means Of communicate
ing with the outside world, and most
of the people who had come to this part
of the Northwest lived, as it were, in
world of their own, and held no inter
course with other worlds.
But only a few years passed when the
first steamboat landed at Fort Smelling
That was in 1923, and from that time
forth the sound of the steamboat whistle
was not an unusual one to the ears of
those who lived along the banks of the
Mighty Father Of Waters" AS soon
as the arrival of steamboats, became
common at this place, they began to
carry the mail that had collected at
down-river points for those who had
come to the newer settlements near the
head waters of the river But as was
the case of the soldiers these mails We're
carried only for accommodation and not
by the government. This means of COM
munication was carried on for several
years, or until the government organized
post roads and established poStofficeS in
various parts of the new territory.
When steamboat would whistle for
landing at the little settlement every per-
son who was able would come out to
meet the steamer and the captain would
deliver the parcels of mail which he had
for those present. AS nearly the entire
population of the hamlet was present to
receive the mail it was not necessary for
the people to have a postmaster. But
as the population increased and the ar
rival of steamers became more frequent,
1t often happened there was mail on the
boat for someone who was not present to
receive it. In such case it was necessary