Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-03-02
ICITY DIRECTORY IS BLAMED
OMISSIONS OF NAMES CAUSE
DELAY IN MAILS.
That's What the Official Publication
of the Post Office Has to Say.
Clock Gets Tired.

At last one reason for the delay in de-
livery of letters from the Washington
post office has been discovered. and print
ed on the first page Of the ofncial organ.
Postal Information. The fault, as
might have been expected. is not in any
Of the divisions of the office. but is one
for which the post Office cannot in any
way be held responsible.
1t is declared in Postal Information"
that experience has proved that the
names of residents are not always pub
lished in the city directory. Omissions"
1t Is further said, "cause delays in the
delivery of mail and consequent fncon-
venience to the persons whose names are
omitted. To remedy this 1t is suggested
that persons receiving delayed mail or
expecting mail which has not arrived
| should examine the current directory,
and in case of omission or of error In
name or address notify the postmaster.
A Profound Mystery.
This will perhaps. be some slight COM
fort to persons whose mail, though cor
rectly addressed. does not reach them
until days and days after it is received in
the Washington office. 1t is easy to see
how mail addressed without street or
number may be delayed by wrong data in
the directory, but what the directory has
to do with any letter bearing street and
number in legible characters is a pro-
found mystery.
1t IT, at any rate gratifying to observe
that the authorities of the post office are
finally willing to concede that there IL
such a thing as delayed letter known
to them. In the meantime the Delays
continue with exasperating regularity, and
letters are received by persons who have
no use for them, while those to whom
they are addressed wait in vain for the
expected mail.
And while the letters were piling up
in the delivery ROOM waiting for the car
riers to take them to the wrong places,
the post office clock stopped. at ten min
utes to twelve. 1t was burning ques-
ton for a whole day on the avenue
whether the hands pointed to ten min
utes to twelve. noon, or ten minutes to
twelve, midnight. Discussion ragged for
| hours, until wise graybeard suggested
that the hands indicated both hours.
though at different times. and that the
clock was absolutely correct twice q
day. which was much better than it's
usual practice of being wrong the whole
tday every day.
Some Wise Suggestions.
doped out. 1t was suggested that the
post office had bats in its belfry, as plain
| ly indicated by the cratic distribution
VI MaAi, put thiS feasoA oio ~. eoeh'
adequate. so 1t was reluctantly abandoned.
After some hours. however, it was de-
| cided that the clock had heard somebody
refer to the 10Th of February as an in
1tercalary day, and had figured out that this
meant it was called upon to do an extra
days work in the year, and 1t had, there
| fore, struck. though not equipped with a
| bell This decision was accepted by the
radicals. but the conservatives contended
| that the clock had been stopped. DELHI
erately, to enable the clerks to catch up
On the distribution of letters that were
growing yellow with waiting. some mis-
guided individual having been convinced
| that by stopping the clock he would hold
| the calendar back a day or SO.
Whatever the reason may have been.
| the clock has been started again. resum-
| ing business at the old stand this noon
and recording the hours as we'll as it ever
did, which does not require much effort.