The Green Forest tribune., 1901-05-25
A TALK WITH JOHN BUELL..
Some Facts and "Reminiscences
 About Green Forest Postof1ce.

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 If you want to learn great deal about the Green Forest post office, you want to fall in with John Buell. when he is in one of his reminiscent moods.
 Such was his state of mind on last Sunday as he viewed the passing of the daily mail stage. This was it's last trip, On Mon day the railroad took charge of the mail line and the days of overland mail coach passed into history.
 THE TRIBUNE sought an inter- view with MT. Buell. and remind ed him that perhaps no one could realize the changes in the Green Forest postoffice more than does he, as he was postmaster four years under Harrison's adminis- tration and has been chief clerk under Mir. Grim for the past four years. John s face beamed with smiles of pleasant memories as he ran over the pages of the rec ord kept by him twelve years ago.
 'sWhen was Green Forest made a money order office?" we asked.
 August 3, 1892, during my term of office,'' said Mr. Buell.. q issued the first money order to w. c. Russell for S1OO. During that year I issued 297 orders; during the past year we have is- sued 1863 orders. The money order forms have changed twice during this time and each time the number would drop back to one, but altogether the office has issued 6752 orders. The post master receives three cents as commission on each order, so you see that during these nine years, and with all this volume of busi- ness, the postmasters have re- ceived as fees only S202. 56."
 'sHas the other business of the office increased in proportion to the money order business?" we asked.
 'Yes," said John, except the registering of letters, which in the main has been supplanted by money orders. When this office was declared a money order office, we received the letters and papers all in one bag. Now, there is a separate letter pouch and from three to five bags of papers.
 "Has the pay of the office in- creased more than the work?"
 "No, 1 used to get out and play marbles with the boys until I would see a patron coming in, and unless it was a lady or some very old man, l would not go till the game was out. There is no play time now. The dullest time in the day affords an inquirer every five minutes. ''
 "With your eight years exper- fence, John, do you ever make any mistakes?"
 ''Yes, we handle an average of 1000 pieces of mail two or three times day, and once in a while a mistake will occur, and you may be assured, we always hear about it, but we never hear any thing about the amount of over work we have to do."
 "Do you ever have to do any more work than the law re- quires?''
 "Yes, Uncle Sam doesn't re- quire us to wrap up postage stamps, nor to lick stamps for our patrons, but people expect us to do up and lick stamps, just the same. I am sort of dys- peptic, you know, and I hate to lick stamps; refused to lick one for a young lady the other day. T don't think any one else will ask me to lick stamps now, as they will all hear about this in- Fcident."
 "Do you ever have any trouble reading addresses on letters?"
 ''Not as much nowadays as we used to have. People are taking more pride in addressing their letters. It speaks we'll to see the little folks learn to write , a neat hand, place 2-cent stamp on the upper right hand corner and a. ratllrn address on the inner