The silver state news. [volume] (Winnemucca, Nev.) 1907-1909, 1907-07-15
u. 5. MAIL
IS STOLEN

A large number Oh DOAcS III tHt
postoffice were robbed of mail some
night last week. This discovery thai
a robbery had been committed was
made by finding large number of let
ters, addressed to various persons, in
the little creek between the postoffice
and Chinatown.
Mrs. Il. Bush, who was going along
the path, picked up letter, thinking
perhaps someone had dropped it. The
letter was addressed to Mack Bonni-
field and. Mrs. Bush then noticed
other letters and envelopes and picked
several of them up They were ad-
dressed to various parties. She called
to Mrs. X. A. Sparks, who was out in
the yard at her home, and the two
women picked up all the letters and
envelopes they could find. They con-
cluded at once that the postoffice had
been robbed.
All the letters had been opened and
in most cases the envelopes were emp
ty.
Mrs Bush dlivered the letter to Mrs.
Bonnifield, who recognized from the en-
velopc that it had contained a very i'm
portant communication. Mrs. Bonni-
field went back with the other two
women and searched for the letter but
could not find it. Mrs. Bonnifield did
find, however, an opened letter relating
to law case which her husband had
charge of, and two letters which had
not been opened.
Mrs. Sparks gave a reporter for the
Silver State News a list of persons to
whom letters were addressed as near
as she could remember.
There was one for NJ b. Staunton &
Co., containing an invoice for goods to
the amount of $3.50.
One for Miss Ethel Kahn contained
a money order, which was turned over
to Postmaster Anderson.
Others who had lost letters were
Mr.. ..iPman, bookkeeper at f. Reinhart
& Co.'S; Mr.. Ruckteschler; w. l. All
ken; Mrs. Dorsey, who knew
by an envelope that she had lost
an important communication. There
were several addressed to mining com
panies, the names oAtwhich Mrs. Sparks
did not remember.
Postmaster Anderson was notified
and such letters as were unclaimed
were delivered to him.
A report was published last Friday
that letters had been found or missed
and the theory was advanced that chill
dren had taken them from the office
The work, however, is undoubtedly
that of thieves, and the fact that the
letters were found in the path and the
little creek between the postoffice and
Chinatown lads to the strong belief
that hobos did the work and threw
the letters away on their way to the
cattle corrals, which is the rendezvous
for box car tourists
When the matter was called to the
attention of the postoffice force by the
Silver State News the clerks showed at
once how such thing was possible
The young ladies who hand out the
people their mail and are blamed for
not delivering letters that were never
written, and all manner of things
came outside and tried all the boxes
! Eighteen combination boxes were found
| open and two lock boxes were found
unlocked, left so habitually by the
owners. Some people are in the habit
of leaving their combination boxes
open or unfastened on purpose because
they can't remember the combination
or because it is too much trouble to
work the combination. Sometimes the
owner of lock box forgets to lock it
after he takes out his mail Generally
the owners of boxes feel that their mail
is safe even if they should leave the
boxes open.
So it was shown to a reporter that
twenty boxes could have been opened
right then, after the robbery, by any
body who came along after dark and
tried.
The letters were not taken from the
4 inside. Had entrance been effected
to the Office other things would have
been taken
Mr.. Anderson sleeps in the postofliee
but the opening of boxes could have
been done so stealthly that he would
not have heard anyone. The postoffice
is very noisy place. People are go
ing back and forth all hours of the
night, along Bridge street and along
tHc pain W AhiudtoWH, anu pdItles
60 into the postoffice at night to mai
letters, making considerable noise as
they do so.
Saturday morning placard was post
cd in the postofiice, signed by Postmas
ter Anderson, Miss Sarah Snyder, Mis-,
Mabel Bartlemay and Miss Alice vii
son, warning patrons of the office that
they would not be responsible for mai
stolen from boxes left open.