Walker Lake bulletin. (Hawthorne, Nev.) 1883-1926, 1902-05-30

Foreigners tell me that we Amer
icans are just about the most waste
ful people on the face OF che round
EARTH" said q stamp clerk In an up
Gown branch postal station the other
day. land / guess that 10 about the
ease. know it's so. II we waste
other things the way we do stamps.
Considering American instinct for
che requirement OF dollars, and the
fact that stamps are a. good 80
money in this country, it is hard 10
understand just why such huge
amount OF money 10 literally thrown
away every year by wasting stamps.
Maybe you think I'm exsggeras-
ing the truth when I say huge sums.
but that's just because You are not
In q position 10 see what goes on.
Neither am l personally. but stemps
are In my line, and take pains 90
ask the delivery superintendent and
the receiving clerks Q few things oe-
casioual,y, and what ahey tell me 10
astonishing.
"I dent think II can be saying too
much 10 say that Uncle Sam 10 much
more than a million dollars in pocket
every year AZ the result of careless
ness IN the use Of stamps. The gov
eminent never loses anything by
such carelessness, and always gains,
says a writer IN the New York Times.
How many do you put loose In q
drawer OF your desk or in a corner
of your pocketbook or wallet and
never think of again until you come
across them, aged and decrepit. while
rummaging about months later? OF
course nobody ever thinks of even
trying to redeem such stamps. They
couldn't IL they tried it.
81 shouldn't wonder if you lost 20
cents worth of stamps yourself in
this way every year. Now, the popu-
lstion of Greater New York il APP
proximately 3,soO,OO0. Surprising that
the waste Of the sort I am talking
about averaged 20 cents annually,
the total would be something like
$780, 900 in Greater New York alone.
You may think this is putting IL
pretty high. and perhaps ii is, for OF
course good part Of the population
OF the city consists OF children. and
then there are other classes who sell
dom use stamps, but II is pretty
plain that several hundreds of thou
sands Of dollars are lost TO Uncle
Sam in this city every year In
stamps that are paid for and never
used.
"Hot weather used 70 be responA-
bic for more gain for the post Office
department than any other one
cause. Stamps were ruined by the
thousand because the gum melted.
and they stuck 70 one another.
THE little oiled paper books OF
stamps that are sold now and that
are getting 10 Ss 90 popular have
interfered with this source of gov
ernmental revenue. They separate
the gummed edges % that they can
not stick together.
"Then there's another practice In
dulged In by many advertising and
business firms that puts a good deal
of coin into Uncle Sans pocket in
the course OF every 12-month, and
that's the practice OF sending out I'M
solicited letters asking for trade or
patronage Of some sort. These are
often accompanied by stamped and
addressed envelopes for q reply that
In the majority OF cases 10 never
made.
IT suppose, - . matter OF fact, not
one-tenth Of them ever elicit replies.
Thus the stamp that has been paid
10 paid for work not done. A few
business houses that know Of col
lect such envelopes and redeem them
when they have got enough to make
Il worth while to do this. There are
thousands OF reply postal cards, too,
that are never used.
Lots OF people are careless about
per wrappers. The result 10 that
often before the stamp has been can
esled It has fallen of and the letter
IL held up At the other end of the
Ane until postage 10 paid.
"a great many more folks put on
too much postage. They slap on two
Ave-cent stamps TO package that
needs only one. They are too busy
or TOO indolent to take the trouble
20 And out whether . package re-
quires Ave or ten-cent postage. II 10
amazing how ignorant well-educated
and intelligent people often arc
about such a common matter of an
formation az the postal rates for
different classes of matter. They
pay for their ignorance. too, and pay
well. altogether.
"Of course there 10 no wsy in
which to tell just how much money
n wasted in these different ways.
but II must be plain after what I've
said that it's a pretty big fortune
every year. The beauty of II is that
the government always gets the
benefit of any mistakes. If too little
postage is put on q letter Uncle Sam
simply holds It up until the differ
ence IL paid. II too much Is put on,
Uncle Sam simply pockets the excess