Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1918-09-13
MAIL FOR The SOLDIERS
Incorrect Address Means Delay OF
Loss.
HERE Are FULL INSTRUCTIONS
Every Individual Who Has Occasion to
Write to the Soldiers At the Front
Should Read This Article Carefully
and Lay II Away for Future Refer

Washington. Scptcmlrre i.-CaptaIl
Frank F.. Frazier. L. :. A.. Assistant
| Director of the American Expedition
AIRY Forces Postal Service at Tours.
| France. has been sent to the United
States on a mission relative to postal
affairs. with authority to furnish in
| formation heretofore, for military rea-
sons. withheld from the postal officials.
| He has furnished under seal OF secrc-
cy. to the postal officers a directory
| giving the location Of troops in France
and Il record of those on the way. Or
dcrS have been issucd to send mail on
every boat destined to dock at any
mail. This. and the adoption OF a
scheme OF designation for groups OF
unattached men sent from the United
States TO replacement camps in France.
which is recommended by Captain
Frazier, will, it is believed. go a long
way toward cxpcditing the delivery OF
letters To soldiers.
| The mail OF more than $4,000 of our
soldiers in France is delayed. and per-
haps cannot bc delivered at all. The
reason for this is that letters for Il
greater number than $4,000, in the ag-
grcgatr, are improperly or Inadequate
| ly addressed.
| Complaints covering these delays
are sufficient to give the public the
| impression that the soldiers mail SER
vice is bad. because improper address
| ing Of letters is wofully common. At
times there are still delays TO the mail
after it reaches port in France. Some
of these are unavoidable: others can
he avoided, and steps to that end have
or are being taken.
Usually Within Three Weeks.
| Only in exceptional cases does II take
more than three weeks for Il properly
addressed letter to reach soldier in
France who is attached to an organ
| lied unit of the army. Most of the
mail reaches its destination in less
time than that. Exceptional circunr
stances may delay soldiers mail as
much as two or three months. or he
may not get it At all. In the extreme
cases where there are several soldiers
of the same name. it will he because
his letters are improperly addressed.
| There are no delays. or ut most none
| greater than Il few days. when the
soldier is located with the organized
| forces and the letter is properly ad-
dressed.
There are, of course, many duplica-
tons Of pames in. the American Expe-
ditionary Forces. The absence Of any
distinguishing designation for groups
of casual or replacement men has
been Il source of difficulty in the de-
livery of mail. Thousands of soldiers
are being sent to France every month
for replacement purposes. They come
from various cantonmcnts-l'ikc, Hum
phrcys. Meade. Lewis and elsewhere
and are usually designated simply
Camp pike, August Automatic Re-
placement Draft" or some similar des-
| ignation. and part of that particular
draft may he sent TO one replacement
| camp in France and part to another.
Mail now forwarded to these soldiers,
who have been scattered among other
organizations at the front-"floaters'
mair'-goes to the central postofiice at
Tours, and it's distribution there Is
still further hampered by being mixed
up with the accumulation Of misdirect-
ed mail 1t is estimated that 100000
letters month were delayed from this
cause. This delay in delivery will not
occur under arrangements which have
lust been made to have each replace
mcnt unit of $50 men or less as it
leaves camp in the United States given
Il distinctive company number, which
il will retain until ii reaches II re-
placement camp in France. Every
member OF such unit will then be one
of $50 men, intscad of one of 100000
men. SO the John Jones" OF the small
unit will be easily located. But it still
rests with the soldier TO Immediately
notify his correspondents as to his cor
rect address Immediately upon his as
signment to a definite unit in France.
Where the success of troop move
mcnt on the front depends upon Sc
crecy, mail cannot be sent to members
Of Il mobile force until they are cstab-
lished at the selected designation. The
same is true when shipments Of sup
plies. munitions. fresh meats. ETC., are
such as to make an extraordinary de-
mand upon transportation facilities
from the French ports. Such delays.
however, are but for a few days at
most.
When a divisional postoffice is NOV
cd in connection with Il big troop
movement. great secrecy must be pre-
served. Under these conditions
weeks delay in the delivery OF mail Is
possible.
4 Wounded man may be sent from
one hospital to another. and even to
several. before reaching a permanent
| base hospital, and his mail will be de-
layed until he Is at hospital long
enough for 1t to reach him. If he
| should be but slightly wounded. not
being at the hospital long enough to
get his mail. and then should be as
signed to new organization. there
would be some further delay. but in
none of these cases is the delay great.
The hospital authorities are required
to notify the Central Postoffice as well
as his company commander immediate
~ on the arrival Of the soldier there
for treatment and mail is sent to him
at once. There is no delay whatever
in mail sent home by or for the
wounded man.
Delays On This Side.
| Only causes OF delay have occurred
at the port Of embarkation in this
country. One is the posting Of the
iettcr just too late TO make the trans
port. when a week might pass before
another sailing. The other Is the linn
itation placed upon ocean transporta-
tion facilities and lack of information