The Denison review. [volume] (Denison, Iowa) 1867-current, 1902-05-09

l can get started to get possession of my
three valuable plays. The mail carrier
can't deliver my mail; they threaten him
until he shoves it into his pocket I wish
you could give me some security that all
my letters will be delivered, as | don't like
10 pay SO much for stamps and all the
writing, as l would suffer a great loss if
the Jews and Gypsies got the money in
stead OF me. We are poor but highly edu-
Gated people, and l would beg you to do
me favor. l am the authoress of all
three of my plays and they make people
believe I found or stole them. The For
tune tellers are putting animals blood into
peoples hearts to ruin their looks. | was
the handsomest girl in Kansas City from
a distance. They imagine they set the
animal IN front of you and the blood is
transferred into your body. That's why
all Chicago people are homely''
This woman shad doubtless been
reading in Revelations or else about
the blood of bulls and of rams.''
About Christmas time letters to
Santa Claus, written by children, find
their way to the postmaster's desk
and thence into the ''curio file,'
where all these letters are put. At
tached to a page which contained a
mere child's scrawl I found four or
live official slips, showing that the
letter had been mailed and postage
due charged and received, that the
matter had been traced back to the
original sender by long official pro-
cess; that the mother of the child who
made the scrawl had addressed an
envelope to humor the child and had
then, as she supposed, laid it away:
but that the child had found the en-
velope and mailed the letter; that no
dlscourtesy was intended, ETC., etc.
From this incident one may guess
that the postoffice employees have
their hands full to attend to all the
duties of our efficient service. An
other official communication in the
curlo file gives a glimpse of the
strange things that are sometimes
sent through the mails. 1t reads:
Il am in receipt of your communica-
ton of the 18th inst, reporting your
receipt of registered parcel from
Florida, containing an oppossum in
an advanced stage of decomposi-
ton"
The uperintendent of mails re-
ceives SO many requests to stop let
ters that have been mailed, and re-
pented of, that this has become a
part of his regular business. Some
times these letters are of a business
nature and their stoppage means
thousands of dollars. Other letters
are of more personal nature and
involve the acceptance or rejection
of marriage proposal. Sometimes
a man who has kept an important
letter IF his wife's in his pocket for
several days endeavors to avert a do.
nestle tempest by inducing the su.
perintendent to date the letter back
few days and thus throw the blame
for the delay on the postotfice depart.
ment; but pleas of this kind are of
no avail. Letter writer's from dis
tant towns who wish to keep their
whereabouts secret sometimes for
ward this mail to the postmaster at
Chicago requesting that he stamp the
letters as coming from Chicago. But
invariably the Chicago clerks stamp
the letters thus: Received from,
WIN iSIuS'oo " 'osI SulcagO.
1t will be seen, therefore, that moth
ing is gained by this attempt at con-
cealment. Men who maintain clan
destine correspondence sometimes,
make the mistake of mailing it to
their wives, and the superintendent
has many calls from men of this
class who want to have their letters
stopped at all hazards before deliy-
cry.
Not few of the letters which
come to the postmaster contain small
conscience funds. One correspondent
sent two stamps to replace two
which she had taken from a letter
that had gone through the mails, but
had somehow escaped the cancellinp
machine, and which she had used n
second time. MILTON MARKS.