The evening world., 1911-11-02
NrWYORk CENSORS
STOP THOUSANDS
OF POSTCARDS
Strenuous Crusade In Chicago
Calls Attention to Quiet
Work Here.
USE THEIR
Every Carrier and SUBJ Station
Superintendent Helps Check
the Improper Output.
USE THEIR JUDGMENT.

months crusaders have been ~rampaging
through the Loop district and Tender
loIn. And low, along with Grizzly Bear,
Apache and kindred ragtime dances. the
of-color postcard has been put under
the ban.
Postmaster ID. A. Campbell is Chi
Cages latest moral champion. He has
Instituted a crusade against objection
able postcards. Censors have been APP
pointed at all the sub-postal stations In
the Windy City. and woe to the UNI
fortunate person with a dubious sense
Of humor WHO attempts to make Uncle
SANS Chicago agents distribute aues-
sSonabie cards.
Postmaster Campbell has divided the
cards shout which there might be some
doubt into three classes:
Men and women kissing.
Women IN abbreviated costume.
Animal pictures.
OF course there are lots Of cards that
ere frankly and Enthusiastically unit for
c~irculation In polite society. It has not
been thought necessary to classify these,
~ Postmaster Campbell believes his
assistants capable OF picking out such
matter without further instruction.
What he Is after Is the development
Of an acute sense Of what In proper
among his sub-station censors. that b
may learn to read between the lines or
pictures Of the seemingly most innocu-
ous postcard and discover the lurking
naughtiness that makes II unit for dis
tyobution.
NEW YORK ceNsoRs HAVE toNo
BEEN ON JOB.
10 md y just what the postal SER
vice Of New York II doing about the
sending Of indecent postcards. N Even
lnk World reporter called on Postmaster
Morgan to-day and showed him the re-
port OF Postmaster Campbeals activities.
They evidently are just waking up to
~ postcard nuisance" said Mr.. Nor
gan. Here IN Now York we have been
stopping indecent and scurrtious post
cards right along. Every Sub-ststion
superintendent and all the carriers are
Instructed to stop any card Of this char
acter. and We receive many hundreds
Of them every day for consignment to
the dead letter ofice.
"Of course there IL such a thing ~
carrying the idea too far. II this list
Of Questionable cards supposed to have
been ordered stopped by Postmaster
Campbell Is correct ! don't see Just how
he 10 going to carry II out.
For instance. there Ia the first item
men and women kissing. Why. there
are some very pretty and innocent
cards, reproduced from the sketches
ana color dra wings Of our best Mustra-
tors. In which sweethearts are shown
n an embrace. Surely, one can hardly
oal such . card indecent.
ABBREVIATED COSTUMES NOT
NECESSARILY VULCAN.
"Then the second division-women In
abbreviated costume. should think
the question OF degree in abbreviatior
should enter here. There are some
cards o. bathing girls n ballet dancer
scout which there Is no element Of In
decency. and there are others OF en-
tirsly different character. Our mon ar
instructed to use their judgment In dis
tinguishtng between what In merel,
artistic and pretty and what Is coars,
- vulgar. Then, too. the printing oil
the card usually Is sufficient to guild
enc In the question whether the card 4
meant to be vulgar or not.
THE order against animal pictures 4
nther stringent. l should think. / sci
Postmaster Campbell In reported to say
Not one picture OF an animal 10 ut 4
b. exhibited in public i have see'
A.-x.-A. 90 narAa <lIOaN In ahpl
windows In which animals are the cen
tral figures that are entirely innocen
and harmless. OF course there ar
other kinds OF animal pictures. but
ehould think any carrier or sub-statio
superintendent would be able to dis
criminate between the two without spe
cial instruction"
Postmaster Morgan called attention
the section IN the Postal laws and regr
laaons covering postcards. This se'
tion Is based on the statute against II
decent mailing matter.
Postmaster Morgan said this reguli
ton. properly observed. Is all that
necessary 20 prevent the circulation 4.
improper postcards. or course. ind
cent cards are often sent In sealed ei
velopes. The postal authorities ha,
no right 10 open an envelope to 81
whether or not the enclosure Is NJ TO
sent drought the mails.
TIL penalty for sending indecent pos
ssNds through the mails Is 5000 fine
years imprisonment. This appll'
not only 10 the sender OF the card b
any p~ostoffice employee who allows
20 70 through his hands. According
Postmaster Morgan few postcards ne
openly under one-cent postage esca
che vigilance of his assistants.
The Chicago crusade against the 4
proper postcard IN an C OF a wic
spread crusade carried on several yea
ago. Among tina cards stopped by
agitation at that time were the
,Patrick's Day cartoon cards. The Fri
organizations throughout the count
carried the matter through the Pc
master General to President Roosev
and won their cause.
Occording TO Postmaster More
there will he no unusual crusade agar
the postcard in New York. He Is
uyely satisfied with the way the IN
~ = being handled