The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1885-1921, 1901-08-22
LETTERS At
YOUR DOOR
Mail Carriers in
Line for the
Delivery.
FIRST TRIPS TO Be
MADE AT ONCE
Hard Work to Arrange Mathew
People Respond to Request
for Postal Data.

begin the making of his daily
round this morning. After week
of preparation, in the way of securing
the names of those on the various
routes who wish to be served through
the carriers, the men will have enough
mail TO carry them through one trip
over their routes with some mail to be
delivered by each. The total number
of letters which are to be taken out
this morning will be only light load,
couple of hundred at the least for
each of the nine carriers, but the men
more work than the mere carrying of
their mail, as there are very few of the
people of the city who have returned
their address slips.
The results of the demonstrating by
the. carriers has not been so satisfac-
tory as the officials in charge of the
work had expected it would be- The
number of persons who so far have Sig
nified their wish to be served with their
mail by carrier is a little less than 5000
approximately 1000 have said that they
prefer to get their mail through the
boxes and less than 200 persons prefer
to patronize the general delivery win
dows. So far there has been no giving
up of the boxes, but it is expected that
there will be surrenders as soon as the
service is under way and the people find
that they can receive their mail at their
homes. This means that less than 200
people have responded to the Depart
ment's request out of a population of
%. 900 in the free delivery limits.
The 1000 persons who have sent in
their names in response to the requests
of the postoffice authorities, with an in
dication as to t.. cir preference in the
matter of the mail delivery, have been
| listed in an office directory. This is for
the present use of the carriers. who so
far have found it of much service They
have taken it into account already in
the sorting out of the mail in the gen
era1 delivery boxes, where they have
| found about a thousand letters which
they will be able to deliver this morn
| ing. Some OF these letters have been in
| the office for several days and their de-
| livery viii mean a lifting of the load
which rests upon that branch of the
service The mails which come in are
found TO be in such an illy-addressed
| condition that it has been necessary to
handle the letters frequently while the
addresses are being discovered.
| The setting of the posts which will
bear the letter boxes is going on bu
the contractor who is doing the work
does not expect that he will conclud,
| it before next week. The boxes are no
being placed on the posts now bu
these will be set in short time aftel
the standards are in position. AS soor
as all the posts are set the boxes vii
be sent out. They are held upon tn
posts by two bolts, which enter tn
boxes and are fastened inside. AS sooI
as they are fixed the locks will be pu
on and the boxes will be ready for TIT
receipt of mail. The collections vii
start at once. the man who will max
them being for the present mounted oil
a bicycle The carriers viii not be Civ
en- wagons at present, as the cost o
this branch of the service viii be $,
great that Mr.. Erwin thought it hes
to refer the contract to Washington
There will be several of the men VIII
will use bicycles and the others will g
in the cars for the present.
That the service is one which vii
grow is shown by the fact that the PEG
lple who have been seen will not Civ
their names without explanation Som
linen have been found who say that the,
lido not want to be forced to have tn
mail delivered and who object 20 wha
they call the attempt. There is a gen
Ieral feeling of not being concerned wit
the matter, and this is taken to accoun
for the small number of replies to tn
request of the Department. Despit
the small proportion Of the people wh'
have signffied any desire as to the dis
position, it is the intention of the De
nartment to give to the city the ser
lyice and what it will be in the futur'
will depend upon the use which
lproyes to be to the people.