Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-12-25
At CITY POST OFFICE
Busy Time for Workers in the
Distributing Offices.
REGULAR AND SUBCARRIERS
Heavy-Laden Agents of Uncle Sam on
Weary Rounds.
OFFICE RUN BY SANTA CLAUS
Stamp Windows and Registry Win
dows Thronged Day and Evening
Incidents Noted
OFFICE RUN BY SANTA CLAUS

There was only one delivery of letter mail
from the city post Office and the various
branch Offices today, but all day long sixty
substitute carriers, who have been hard
at work since Sunday, went in and out of
the offices intent upon delivering rapid
ly as possible the thousands of Christmas
packages that have been pouring into the
city from all parts of this country and other
countries. No schedule Of delivery is be-
ing adhered to by these carriers. 1t is case
of getting the work done quickly.
Christmas day is looked upon by the
Post Office Department as a national holt
day. as it is by every other branch of the
government, and the regular carriers are
only required to make two deliveries one
of letters at o'clock and another Of pack
ages at noon. but in order that the sea-
sons cheer may be carried to the city's
residents on this occasion the sixty subs
are taken on and given permission to do
all the work they can. They are being paid
by the hour and the work is to be kept up
until the great surplus of packages in the
offices is cleared up.
The biggest rush in the delivery division
occurred yesterday, although today there
have been such quantities of bundles piled
up on the floors Of the offices that the in
experienced spectator has wondered how it
could possibly have been worse yesterday.
1t is hoped by the officials of the local Of
flee that the biggest part of the rush will
be over early this afternoon; in fact, by
noon some Of the subs had to ease up a
bit because the supply was running short.
Many Trains Behind Time.
Mail trains from the south and west are
running as much as seven hours behind
time, SO that there is likely to be some
thing doing" in the offices until late in
the evening. 1t is stated that persons who
no w.t. ;&i
from out of town should not be disappoint-
ed If they do not get them today or even
tomorrow, because of the congestion of the
mails in other cities and in the railway
mail cars. In another twenty-four or forty
eight hours, however, it is confidently ex-
pected that everything will have settled
back to normal conditions in the postal
service.
on the package mail have been familiar
figures throughout the city since Sunday.
Each man goes out laden with two bags
slung over his shoulder. Bundles protrude
In all directions and lend a Santa Claus
appearance to the gray-coated man in the
center. During this Christmas season it
is estimated that 2,600 bags of packages
have been distributed in Washington Last
year the total In bags was about 1900
A number of things received at the local
post office have caused amusement among
the clerks. Yesterday a mailing tube was
received, which was addressed to Theodore
Roosevelt, and it was not hard to see that
it contained big, juicy lemon. The post
office authorities assumed the right to hold
this up. and it was sent to the dead letter
Office along with hundreds OF postal cards
which come within the ban of the postal
laws and regulations.
Kris Kringle in Charge.
The general post office was run by Kris
Kringle yesterday, and every official in
the building was his Woodworking aid.
From the time the clerks appeared in the
morning, bright and alert for business, until
they went home at night, fairly tagged out,
there was never a minute that the various
stamp windows, registry and money order
divisions were not crowded with men and
women, laden with packages, that give
promise of a fine dead letter sale next sea-
son. should one-third of them go astray.
A clerk who has had experience enough to
make his opinion worth quoting said that
yesterdays mail was the heaviest in the
history Of the department, and that the
packages were never SO securely tied
legibly addressed. Naturally, there were
ing waited her turn at the registry window.
put her two big packages and four little
ones on the ledge and pushed them through
to the clerk. She was evidently pleased
with the looks of those packages, for her
eyes beamed on the holly leaf paper and
the red ribbon that tied them in bows
You have neglected to write your own
address, remarked the clerk, mildly as
she pushed the package back.
"Oh, do have to do that? Why, l think
it ruins the looks of a package to be written
all over. I'd rather leave it SO, If It's all
the same to you
1t wasn't all the same to the clerk SO
the woman had to drop out of line and take
her bundles to another window, where there
were ink and pens. Then she took her
place at the bottom of the long line.
"Wen it's funny what / did with that
knife of mine," said q man with his eyes
on the ledge where he had been addressing
packages and his fingers ferreting around
in his pockets. Il had it minute ago
cutting string. 1 didn't want to loose that
knife
Somebody swiped it," said another man
who was with him. You ought to know
better than to leave knife around in a
crowd like this Come on around here, 1
want to drop these post cards"
The Other Side.
Perhaps that identical knife may have
been swiped, but within half hour a new
card appeared on the bulletin board an
nouncing that a pocket knife had been
found. Nearly dozen of these found
cards were placarded in conspicuous places
along the corridors, among the articles ad-
vertised being umbrellas, shopping bags,
eyeglasses and "a piece of money!
ooh, wouldn't just love to have that let
ter man as he stands!' calculated one
young woman as she nudged her compan-
ion to look at mail carrier about to start
on delivery trip, with his leather bag top
ping over with packages and still more
packages. by the dozen, tied together skill
fully with string.
You are easy to please laughed the
companion.
while you are about it, why don't you
wish for two. They'd keep You busy un-
tying bundles for month"
man and woman were directing let
tiers on the ledge where the post cards are
exhibited for the benefit of the blind. With
no further instruction than a card directing
purchasers to drop the cent each cost in the
little box just by
II guess half OF these cards are stolen"
said the man. as he selected a couple and
put two cents in the bcG.
Sounds like you thought yourself better
than your neighbors." snapped the woman
About the Bulletin Boards.
The typewriter list Of advertised letters
had their eager readers there being seldom
less than half dozen people in the wait