New Ulm review. (New Ulm, Brown County, Minn.) 1892-1961, 1915-08-18
MUCH MAIL IS HANDLED.
CONTINUED from first pape.)

MUCH MAIL IS HANDLED.
CONTINUED from first page.)
to 60 out. It's estimated that the Postal
department saves some $4,000 year
in this way on the cordage bill. How
much they lose in the waste Of time of
the clerks has never been ascertained.
But we all have a right to our hobbies
and this is the chief one of the Postmas-
ter General
The parcels post is a big and rapidly
growing department Of the postal ser
vice. This is the slack season Of the
year in the department but still the long
table is crowded with packages. In the
Holiday rush season, the table is entire
ly inadequate to hold the packages OF
every size and shape and previous con-
dition Of servitude that are brought in by
every mail. The post Office regulations
in regard to the size Of packages that
may be sent by parcels post have
gradually been increased till now pack
age up to eighty-four inches in combined
length and girth will be taken.
During the early days Of this depart
ment it was found that the public
had little idea of what could be sent to
advantage by mail. And the packing
OF the commodities was lost or rather
an undiscovered art. The result was that
perfectly good eggs were frequently
scrambled like the stock of interstate
railroads. Special study has been given
to the transportation problem, however,
and these early difficulties are fast dis
appearing. Companies have been form
ed for the manufacture Of packages
and cartoons for the transportation of
produce thru the mails. The require
ments Of such conveyors are, of course,
maximum of strength and minimum Of
weight. Specially constructed past board
boxes have been found to give the best
results. Packing boxes of every size
and description are now being manu-
featured for parcel post use. There
are egg boxes that will hold from two
to five dozen eggs that enable the farmer
to send his strictly fresh eggs to the
crowded marts of trade by the rural
carrier and get them there in their or
iginal symmetry. There are butter boxes
and sausage boxes and bottle boxes and
any old sort Of box you may ask for.
And right here, as an aside to some pro-
gressive local merchant is chance to
make little money on the side handling
these boxes in New Ulm. There seems
to be no place to buy them at present
and the demand is constant for them.
Why not lay in stock of them and then
let people know what you have?
The matter Of packing produce Sc
curely for shopping is SO important that
Postmaster Pfaender is contemplating
a booth at the Brown County fair to
display the latest articles in packing
boxes. He has written to score of
firms which make a business of manu-
featuring these boxes and cartoons and
from the returns thus far, it would seem
that the visitors to the fair will be able,
to get some fine ideas as to the best pos
sible methods Of using the parcels post.
One feature of the local post office that.
very few people know anything OF is the
system Of inspection. Postal inspectors
make irregular visits to the post Office
to see that all things are running as they
should. Any complaint as to service or
OF Irregularities in the local postoffice
would bring an Inspector on thes Jump
from Washington. And he doesn't an
nounce bis coming nor his intentions,
either. Placed around the walls in posi-
tons to command every corner of the
Office are lookout holes" There are
lattlced windows from behind which the
inspector may watch every movement in
the Office below and at the same time be
entirely hidden from view himself. If
he sees anything suspicious going on,
he can watch it at leisure and discover
crookedness that might be there. And
it is not necessary for even the post
master to know of his presence. He
may even be under surveillance himself
and never know it. The Inspector has
his own key to the building and can let
himself in at will and get in position
to see and hear every thing without
s oul being the wiser. Verify, the walls
OF the local post office have ears and eyes
too. And this method of spying has
worked very successfully in exposing
mail frauds in St. Paul and other cities.
1t is big business, is the local post
office, and very interesting one. The
only wonder is that more mistakes are
not made in sorting and distributing
the vast amount of mail that is received
ande dispatched every day in the year.