The daily star-mirror. (Moscow, Idaho) 1911-1939, 1918-04-19
MAIL TO SOLDIERS
IS Overwhelmed
Parcel Post Is Loaded Down With
Unnecessary Articles for
Army Men.
PRIVILEGE MAY Be CURTAILED
Postoffice Department Statement As
serts That Large Number of
Articles So Carried Can Be
Purchased at Canteens.

WdSuiHS tOu-IudC the pdTCel post
mails to soldiers in France are greatly
burdened by reason of so many I'M
necessary articles being mailed, and
that there may arise a necessity for
curtailing the parcel post privilege to
soldiers are shown In the following
statement given out by the Post Of
fee department:
Recently government transport
reached France carrying to the SOL
diers at the front 1880 letters and
35,840 pieces of parcel post and news
papers. The letters weighed 8A tons
and the parcels and papers in excess
of 113 tons. By reason of the bulki-
ness Of the mail, this shipment took up
in excess of $4,000 cubic feet of space
on the transport. This means slice
Of the ships cargo space 100 feet long,
10 feet high, and IL feet wide. The
715,98O letters went into 346 sacks but
the pieces of parcel post and papers
required 1852 sacks. When this mail
was unloaded at French port the let
tiers filed completely one of the small
French cars, which are half the size Of
the American mail cars, but the par
cells and papers required train of 10
cars.
Waits for Days on Cars.
The mail that is unloaded from the
ships must frequently wait days at
the port before cars can be spared
from the heavily burdened railroads
in France to move the mail.
When the United States army pos
tai service was first inaugurated mail
reached all of the camps in the coun-
try in one to two days, according to
distance and train connections. Today
mail, by reason Of its vast volume and
the heavy demands on the railroads,
frequently takes six days to reach Cen
eral Pershing's headquarters.
According to report from New
York and Chicago Of some of the con-
tents of this parcel post matter to the
troops, a 12-hour inspection of the par
eel post as it was being searched for
infammables and explosives disclosed,
among other things, 1872 boxes of
matches, 361 cans Of solicited alcohol,
224 cigar lighters Gall of these of the
greatest menace to the safety of the
ship) 1,24S cakes, 3,818 packages OF
candies, 1882 bars of chocolate, be-
sides countless scores of useful, as
well as useless, articles, including
a bouquet Of artificial flowers, baby
outfit, and a bottle Of whisky.
The question this state Of affairs
raises is: Why send apples and or
anges that become bruised in the long
transit and rot in the stuffy holds OF
the ships, when the recreation rooms
Of the Young Mems Christian associa-
ton and other welfare organizations
serve fruit fresh from Italy and Spain,
that takes up no cargo space; why
send cakes and candies and chewing
gum, when the post canteens sell IL
varieties of cakes and cookies, fresh
baked in France, at American prices,
Or q bare shade higher; why try to
send across vast quantities Of matches,
which endanger the ship and which Is
penitentiary offense to place even In
he domestic mails?
Can Buy Same Articles in France.
Two-thirds of the articles found in
12-hour inspection tour when work
ng the soldiers parcel post are on
General Pershing's canteen list and
old in retail quantities to the soldiers
t practically wholesale prices.
The question will have to be ans
vered by the relatives Of the soldiers,
r it will, Of military necessity, be
drastically by the authori-
les in France charged with the re-
for the success of this war.