Gulf Coast breeze. [volume] (Crawfordville, Fla.) 1897-19??, 1904-07-22
DEAD LETTER OFFICE:
THIRTY THOUSAND MlsslvEs A
YEAR FAIL TO ARRIVE.

Washington Where There 10
Blending Of Joy and sorrow-some
Curious Articles Found in the Mails
How rarely n letter miscarrics when
its writer has ordinary Intelligence
and Is familiar with the conventions
which pertain TO postal transmission
In the United tates, II the person TO
whom the letter Is sent has moved
with little delay his letter pursues
him. If carelcssness by the sender
Confounds numbers, streets, counties,
towns. even states. with what INFINITE
pains are the mistakes correctedby the
postal clerks, Yet. with all this care
more than 10000 unclaimed letters and
parcels daily find their way 10 the
Dead Letter Office at Washington,
Visiting the fine new postofiice
structure in Washington, one leaves
the ground floor by an elevator Tor the
Dead Letter Office. Left below are
hopes that are fast being carried To
fruition: approaching are those when
have failed OF it-not yet hopelessly
failed, for passing down the corridor
Of the Dead Letter Office, watching the
more than a hundred clerks as they
rapidly tear the wrapper from letter.
from paper, from parcel. one teeis
that. though sacred privacy be invad'
ed, an ultimate JOY may possibly sue
coed Il. And not always Is this pri-
vacy invaded, for. while more than g.
100000 letters and parcels were opened
during the year just passed, l,OOo'ooo
were delivered unopened to the own
ers, 100000 Of them to foreign coun'
tries.
No longer, as formerly, Is there
distinctive dead letter museum. but
some of the curious articles OF interest
found i'm the mails are included IN the
general postal museum, on the ground
floor of the building.
The first thing which the visitor en-
counters Ia the pathetic case OF SOL
diers' photo\ raphs. AS he turns lear
by leaf of II he fancies the weary wait
ing at the home freside for the face OF
the soldier boy wh6 never came; alas,
many times the lad himself found sep
ulchre on the battlefield or died in
the hospital, and this priceless me-
mento would so have comforted the
mourning hearts who perchance walt
ed long and hopelessly his coming. The
faces are faded, the paper yellow with
age. OF a style and fashion long passed
/ In. N thnln VIM
look on them now, yet there was a
time when the loyelight from each pic
From the corridor. Illustrative of
mail transportation from the earliest
days when IL was undertaken. and its
methods In the most remote and mac
cessible parts do duty for the express
mail, one enters a room consecrated
mostly to the unique and curious col
lection selected from the Dead Letter
Office.
In the glass cases which contain the
ehibit the pathetic and the ridiculous
touch other and one may at the same
moment be moved to smiles or tears.
while a shiver OF horror creeps over
him at the sight Of an internal ma.
chine fortunately unclaimed or a dy-
Mantle bomb not less Internal.
Balls. bullets and various mementos
OF war are numerous. and some of the
stilettos and other side arms OF beau
tiful workmanship. Near by there Is
a pair of handouts, which perchance
might tell a story.
The reptile world, among other vari.
cites, is represented by a rattlesnake.
a horned toad, tarantula and numer-
Gus crocodiles, mostly alive when sent.
There are a jawbone, possibly of an
ass, with all its teeth firm set, and sev.
eral sets OF false teeth. for which the
corresponding gums have perchance
worn themselves out with waiting: a
skull, white and grinning, while its
fellow members are dust; an Indians
head. Indian moccasions, and many
pairs Of baby shoes. shaped by the lit
tie feet which have worn them, and
which, alas, failed to tell their little
tender story TO an absent father.
A complete layette suggests the low
ing thought which sent a welcome to
some expected baby guest, with dolls
OF all races and varieties, from Chi
nese to walnut. together with toys of
many descriptions.
Here are the wedding cake which
some bride had to do without. a large
box Of raisins which might have en-
abled some other bride to make her
own cake. and boxes Of candy
sweets" which never reached "the
sweet