Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1902-11-05
UNCLE sAM's BUSY POSTMEN.
The Earth Nightly Criss-CrOssed
With Lines of Fire and Fast Mail.

Inc Eartn NlRhtAy SribS.CrObSSu
With Lines of Fire and Fast Mail.
If you could take a voyage around
the earth with the flying night, so that
| whenever you gazed down at the globe
you would find 1t in the darkness. you
would see darting lines of light going
criss-cross over it in every direction.
Where the United States lies you
would see more of them than anywhere
else. You would see them gliding rest
lessly from the Atlantic to the Pacific.
from the Great Lakes to the Gulf Of
Mexico. Glimmering lines would be
visible to you where they go threading
among the Rocky Mountains.
North Of the United States you would
see some black patches where there
would be no such bewildering maze OF
them. But even there, even in the will
derness Of Alaska, you would see some.
In fact you would see some lights
flashing and hurrying along everywhere
on the globe. You would see them rush.
ing across Siberia.
fitting along the shores Of the Indian
ocean, some speeding down toward the
Cape Of Good Hope, others going along
the northern coast on the shores of the
Mediterranean sea.
You would see them in China and the
Philippines, in India and in Turkestan.
AS for Europe, that continent would
look to you like great loom Of flaming
threads, all busily weaving.
Those lights are the railroad trains Of
all the world carrying the fast mail.
The fastest trains, the fastest ships, the
fastest horses, the fastest runners Of
the world are used day and night every
where from Point Barrow, Alaska, to
the Cape Of Good Hope, to carry the
mails.
Your Uncle Sam was not one Of the
first in the field Of carrying mails. Some
Of the smaller countries in Europe were
far ahead Of him for time. But now
he is the leader Of them all. ..
He has more postoffices and employees
than any other country. He carries
more mail matter. More mail Is deliv-
cred to each Of his sons and daughters
than anywhere else.
He has $4,000 more postoffices than
Germany and $1,000 more than Great
Britain. He has 5000 more employees
than Germany. and Great Britain Is
80, 900 behind him.
He has nearly $4,000 more miles Of
mail routes than the nearest country,
Russia. He spends $10.0OO,OOO more a
year on his mails than any other coun-
try.
But he Is behind in some things still.
Germany, for instance, has 5000 more
letter boxes than Uncle Sam. He ranks
second in this.
In the number of postofflces. as COM
pared with population, he Is seventh in
the list. The countries that lead him
are New Zealand, Canada, South Aus
tralia, New South Wales. Victoria and
Switzerland.
Uncle Sam has been making some
comparisons between his postoffice bus
mess and that of other places. and he
has found queer things.
For instance, he has found that while
the United States, Germany and Great
Britain have the most postoffices In the
| world, the country that has the fourth
place is in far away Asia. 1t is British
India, and it ranks fourth In the num-
ber of its postofices.
Another country that stands high IN
the list Is Japan. 1t is eleventh In the
list for number Of postoffices and leads
such European countries as Switzer-
land, Spain, Portugal, Sweden, Nor
way, The Netherlands, Denmark, Bel
GUM and Greece.
The land that has the smallest num-
ber of postoffices Is the Independent re-
public Of the Congo. 1t has thirty-two.
In these thirty-two 1t employs seventy
men. Every now and then letter car
rier Of the Congo postoffices Is eaten by
lion or leopard.
The path of these bearers of the mail
Is through forests and swamps. Some
times they must camp at night In places
where the wild beasts prowl around
them in the darkness.
Uncle Sam has some peculiar mail
routes himself. Even in the populous
Middle Atlantic states scores Of his
carriers have to drive, ride or climb
along roads that are old Indian trails.
Some of his. carriers have to ride
armed. He has real western rough rid
ers, who go through defiles Of the
Rocky Mountains on broncos. He has
Indian runners and canoemen In Alas
ka.
All kinds Of steamboats, carry his
mail. They range in size from great
coast liners and tramp steamships TO
little putting launches.
Men dwelling on coral islands In the
Gulf of Mexico are sure Of one visitor
at least, and that Is the mail boat.
Sternwheelers go into the beautirui
dreamy bayous Of the south with
mighty splash that frightens alligators
and herons and deliver the United
States mail in lonely marsh settle
ments.
Even whaling ships are used by Uncle
Sam. They go far north into Behring
sea. One mali route of Uncle Sam is
attended to entirely by steam whalers
that sail from Seattle in Washington.
These ships take letters and packa-
ees from home to men hidden away in
the frozen country north of Behring