The Saint Paul globe. (St. Paul, Minn.) 1896-1905, 1901-09-08
" thought of one of theft why these let

~ thought of one of theft why these let
tiers do not reach their addresses.
or course. nearly everybody supposes
tney are stolen by dishonest postal en-
ployes, and most of them are purloined.
1t is very easy for the thief to detect the
coin, even If 1t is so small as a 10-cent
piece. Where there are several coins or
quarter or 5O-cent piece it is like finding
money to the dishonest employee into
whose hands it falls
There are several methods of sending
coin through the mails to avoid detec-
ton, and the most common is to fit the
pieces into spaces cut from -paSteboard.
When the hand is run over the envelope
the presence of the coin cannot be de-
tected, but II tho letter is bent back
ward and forward the thief, from his
long experience in handling mail matter,
detects the coin therein, and they go in
hiS pocket forthwith.
LAS you stated, most of this money
comes from the rural districts, where
the quality of envelopes is usually in
ferior. AS all mail matter is more or
less roughly handled in transit espe-
cially in rubbing and coming in contact
with heavy and bulky pieces of matter
IN the mail bags, the corners of the en-
velopes are worn of become torn, and
the coins drop out in the mail bags, or
in the postoffices, and cannot, of course,
be identified. So they are sent to the
dead letter Office, and that Is the way,
no doubt, your correspondent lost his
money.
IF the managers of business houses
and the public will bear in mind that no
less than $1,000 envelopes containing
money We're found loose in the malls last
year.. and that an approximate number
are found loose every year, the reason
why never received my paperi or why
didn't those goods come will be an
swered.
These loose coins and envelopes pour
into the dead letter office from postoffices
and railway mail postoffice routes-ali
over the country and aggregate a large
FoOSta 2Sf9 nv the thOi1c nd
| are also found loose in the mail bags
and in the mails. How they get there
or where they come from, or to whom
| they belong, none can answer with pos
tive Identification. save that they got
out of letters or packages in some man.
ner.asThe department had returned to it
last year $500 worth Of these loose post
age stamps, piecemeal, from single
stamps to a dozen or more In a lot, and
! there is no record Of the number that
!. were found by postal employees and new
err turned In
1.-THE question of a special issue Of
money, which has for its primary object
use for mailing purposes, has; been more
or less agitated of late If this money
| who patronize the large stores of the
great cities. or those who desire to send
money through the mails, 1t might accom-
plish- its purpose, but if it circulated as a
general medium of exchange it is ques-
| tionable. If the semitters didn't have it
handy they would send coin just the
! So.lllc. xAS YOU 'SldL0, your mousse Often
receives letters with several pieces of
coin and pennies in the envelope, some
letters containing 81 and 81. That's the
|. only money these people have, so they
send 1t and trust to luck that it goes
I through.
Postage stamps are objectionable for
many familiar reasons. There is consid-
cradle time, penmanstip and labor and a.
small additional sum of money necessary
before you may procure a money order,
and then only at money order Offices, and
many of your subscribers and the Gus
toners of the large stores mail their let
tiers at the offices which are not money
order Offices.
1T will be. seen,e therefore, that there.
are good reasons why a special issue of.
currency for use in the mails might be-
come popular if it cireulates in the right
channels. % &H
Another plan would be to reduce the
fee on money orders on sums under SIS
to cents, and lower the fee on other
amounts up to the $100 limit. Such re-
duction would undoubtedly cause tremen-
douS increase In the. money order bust
ness, and whether it would yield as much
revenue as at present could be decided
only when the plan went into operation
and was tried for q reasonable length of
time.
Government matters, postal and other
wise, should not, in all instances, 1t.
seems to. me, be considered from the
the government should not consider it adj
visable to issue a special kind of currency
the problem under discussion may be par
TALLY solved by the reduction of the
fee for money orders to 5the lowest pos
Sible sum.
cat any rate, those who send money
through the mails, whether in coin or cur
rency, should remember that the gov
eminent does not insure it's safe delivery,
except when the letter is registered, and
then up to the amount of $40 only.
"Subscribrs to newspapers and store
patrons may save themselves a great
amount of annoyance aud money if they
will send a money order in their letter,
If it is possible to procure it,