Evening star., 1916-12-12
SADNESS PARAMOUNT
IN MONEY ORDER LINE
Foreigners Sending Christmas Funds
"Back Home" Show Anxiety
and Distress.

Women in mourning garb and men
with solemn faces, waiting in line these
days all over the United States before
post office windows where foreign
money orders are issued. tell a word
less story of the sorrows of wars de-
struction reaching across the seas to
America.
A third Christmas time of world con-
flict has seen long lines of happy folk,
radiant with holiday spirit at the pros
pect of sending something "home to
the old folks" turned into silent parties
of mourners, sending back money to
alleviate suffering and filled with
anxiety and distress with the uncer-
tainty of it's safe arrival There is
also the grave uncertainty that when
a gift reaches its destination no one
will be there to receive 1t.
Postal clerks have been quick to note
the change. Veterans in the service.
who have been issuing Christmas money
orders to all parts of the globe for
years, say they no longer hear eagerly
told stories of the gifts the money was
to buy. They hear only hopes that it
may arrive safely to provide food,
clothing and fire, or perhaps medicine.
The line is a little shorter and the
people average much older this year
.
is attributed to the fact that the gov
ernment, despite determined efforts, is
unable to guarantee safe and speedy
delivery of money orders in the war
zone. Old age has taken it's place in
line because the sons of many are now
across the seas on the fighting fronts.
U. S. Is Real Santa Claus.
Through the postal money order de-
Santa Claus to far more people of the
entente allies than of the central pow
ers this year. Delivery of orders in
England and France has been inter-
fered with only slightly. No delivery
is being made in Austria, and German
points receive their orders late. if. in
deed, they get them at all Virtually
no orders are being sent to Russia,
largely because Warsaw, which was
the central station for the payment of
orders, now is in the war zone. This
situation has affected the money order
receipts in this country greatly, too,
for in former years Russians in the
United States led all tthe remaining
foreign-born citizens in sending money
home at Christmas time.
Prisoners of war will receive many
money orders this Christmas. This is par
ticularly true in England, where delivery
is good. By an agreement made several
years ago in a convention Of various coun-
tries to effect postal agreement it was
arranged that orders to prisoners OF war
should be transmitted free Of charge, and
the United States is living up to the agree
ment scrupulously.
Submarine activities have had much to
do with decreasing the Christmas business
in foreign orders, and if the total for this
year falls below that for 1915. as probably
it will, the underseas liners can be
blamed for much of the decrease, accord
ing to Third Assistant Postmaster General
Dockery.
"Of course it is impossible to say just
how much the submarine activities
have affected the money order busi-
ness" he said, but they have cut 1t
down much
Due to this and other causes. the
foreign money order business is in
chaotic state. 1t began to fall off with
the beginning of the war and has de-
creased gradually ever since.