The Rock Island Argus and daily union. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1920-1923, 1922-01-02

does it wish to pursue persons who
do not desire to be found"
Credit agencies are already ask
ing the department to help them
find disappearing customers. De-
/ frauded men are trying through the
postoffice to locate confidence men
who cheated them and departed
over night. Some of them feel that
they are no less heartbroken than
father who has not seen his
daughter for five years, and they
are Just as anxious as he to locate
f, their missing friends"
This is work for the police. Il
is not the business of the postof-
flee department, and it is not the
service of good will which the post
master general wants his postmas-
ters to perform.
! Mr.. Hays points out that hunting
for missing men is not a part OF
the departments work by any or
der, and that the department has
not obligated itself to find thou.
sands of lost persons in the coun-
try What Mr.. Hays did do was tc
3 suggest that he would like the post
masters to do what they can tG
help sincere persons who have been
unable to locate relatives
J The postmaster generals print
ed suggestion. sent out to the post
office, leaves details as to how this
assistance is to be given to the
judgment of the postmaster After
he talks with an inquirer the post
master may decide that there is nc
clue to follow, or he may feel that
the quest, if successful, would not
end in happy family reunion.
How POstmasterS Work.
J If he does feel that the, visitor is
sincere. he proceeds by inspira-
ton. He may get in touch with
postmasters where the missing
man has been. Some postmasters
have inserted notices in local news
papers. They have notified police
departments. They have given their
letter carriers instructions to keep
a lookout for man or woman an
. sweTing the description given
Some of the missing men have been
located in these ways
!
identified, he is told that he is be-
ing inquired after. If he wishes tC
get in touch with the mother. OF
: whoever it is seeking him, he does
so. If he does not wish to be re
united to his family, the postoffice
! department does nothing further
1t has no wish to become involved
in any domestic affairs.
/ Some of the persons who have
written to the department to know
how to receive help in locating
missing men have shown that they
did not quite understand Mr. Hays
offer. Some had a confused idea
that the postoffice system was tG
write to every postmaster in the
country to locate the missing
! Wholesale letter writing of this
sort by postmasters, or by individ-
uals either, would obviously be out
of the question. There are more
than fifty thousand postOffices il
/ the country. One postmaster wrote
that if he was supposed to SEND
! letters to all his fellow postmas-
tiers he would have to have a corps
of stenOgraphers. Mr.. Hays an
swer was to use his own judgment
( The pOstoffice department does
not know how many inquiries are
being brought to postoffices, anG
how many persons are being tTae-
ed At first large numbers Of let
tiers came in to the department but
! gradually people are beginning a.
understand that they are to 90 tC
their local postofices. No record
of the number of visitors to tie
postmasters has been collected
Judging by the hundreds of letters
tina thave come into the department
there is great interest in the new
: service.