Okolona messenger. (Okolona, Miss.) 1900-current, 1903-01-28
POST OFFICE CURIOR
Ola Things That Come 70 Light d
the Postal Service.
= Carrier Who Gets es5,OOo q Yeas
MaiIing n SILVER DOuaE-HOw
Employees Keep TRACK %
AadFssses, Ets.

A little item which appeared hid-
den away in q mass of other Washing
ton news. q day or two ago, unimpsr
tAnt In itself, gave an interesting
glimpse at the ramihcGtions Of the
most gigantic Of modern public uth-
ties, the United States post oboe de-
partment. The item was thSannounce-
ment Of the establishment of the new
est post ONCE IN the e~Ountry-in Aas-
ka-and the appropriation Of $4,000
for the annual salary of the letter OaRs
Fisr who covers the route from DaWr
son, says the Detroit NswETribunA.
The new service IL at present .
monthly one, and the letter carrier
provides HIS own Sledgs and dogs
Large " his salary IL, IL appears that
he earns II all, for already the man
has been carried away by a~valanches,
made q prisoner by snowdrfts, fallen
down mountain precipices, and had
other adventures exciting II not pleas
ant.
Just how big an institution the post
Office il, probably few people realise
Even figures convey no very clear inn
preston since they begin to mount
up into the hundred millions. Still,
q few figures Of the post oh3OS are not
without their interest
To begin with, there are over 1900
post Offices IN operation tAroughout
the country, and about 40, 00O,O00mnss
Of mail service performed This h ON
the authority Of q pamphlet just -
sued entitled; Postal Statistics Of the
United States" which the third asuiEt-
ant postmaster general has prepared
From the same source It Is learned that
during the single year of 1901 there
were 4,S29, 07s, 500 stamps used by the
people Of the United States, 7T2,sso,-
600 stamped envelopes and csc, 1900
postal cards.
The number Of pieces of matter of all
kinds mailed during the year was
7,424, 800 1929. There were 2O,S14,s 800
registered letters, and the amount IS
sued in money orders was s274, H6,O67.
Parentheticallyitm may be interesting
to mention that, according to Brad
streets, two-thirds Of all the letters
which pass through the post offices of
the world are written and sent to peo-
pie who speak English. Of this two
thirds considerably more than half
pass through the post Offices of the
United States.
Every now and then people who are
accustomed to receive much CORE
spondence find themselves surprised
by the accuracy with which the Off
cials of the postal service have sue
ceeded IN tracing out, through sue
cessiong of changed addresses, many
Of them altogether inadequate If not
absolutely erroneous, the proper own
2 OF the letters and delivering them
at their dSst4nat4on in safety. This
is accomplished through q system
which, in its way, Is as perfectly or
ganizsd and az efficient az the best
equipped detsOt4Vs or police bureau in
che world.
AZ the general post Office in every
large city a. kept Especial directoryi I'm
which all the names which appear in
the regular city directory, and thou
sands OF Others, are kept. Between
each Of the printed leaves of this d.
rectory + bound four blank pages.
These pages are for the inscription Of
changed addresses. A person who
changes his address 50 informs either
his carrier OF the post office, and the
change Is noted in the directory.
If mail comes improperly addressed,
or without any address excepting the
persons name, reference is made to
the directory. II the name is not found
che five names most like It are writ
ten upon the envelope with their ad-
dresses appended, and these I'VE ed
dresses are tried. OF the letters which
thus ego through the directory" the
Of about half are found.
A recent test OF the safety Of tia