The New York herald. [volume] (New York, N.Y.) 1920-1924, 1922-02-05
THE ART OF MAILING LETTERS.

THE ART OF MAILING LETTERS.
HE other day, in the course of our
wanderings. We stopped for a few
minutes near busy letter-box to
study the technique of some of the people
who deposited mail there. AS a result of
our investigation we are able to submit to
our readers classified list of letter-mail
ing types:
A. The demon lid-swinger.
B. The worried address-verifer.
C. The anxious mail-schedule con-
suffer.
ID. The stamp-squeezers.
r. The wholesale mailer.
F. The man who drops his letter in
the box without any fuss and walks off.
TYPE A, or the demon lid-swinger, is
doubtless familiar to all. He drops his
letter in the box, and, even when he can
hear it hit bottom, swings the lid up and
down 46 times-or, if he is an advanced
case-79 times, to make sure that his price
less epistle isn't stuck somewhere. He
begins with the right hand and when that
is tired he switches to the left.
There is theory that the demon Id
swinger is simply an exercise field and
that he deposits dummy" letters. Those
who advance this theory contend that the
lid of a letterbox is an ideal exercising
device, and since these Government boxes
cannot be purchased the demon lid
swinger must resort to a ruse in order to
avail himself of their muscle-building prop
critics. How true this is we can't say.
TYPE p, or the worried address-verifier,
is another interesting specimen. This type
is usually a female person. She walks
abruptly to the letter-box- take deep
breath, for this is going to be long SEN
tence)-pulls the lid down, lets it fall back
without depositing anything, reads, re-
reads and re-re-reads the address OF the
letter to make sure it is right, pulls the lid
down again, and, just as you think she is
about to mail her letter, let's the lid fall
back again without dropping anything in,
turns the letter over to make sure she has
placed return address on the back of the
envelope. breathes sigh of relief when
she notices she has, pulls the lid down
again, takes last long look at the pre-
cious epistle, glares at a gentleman, who.
noticing her hesitancy, deposits letter Of
his own while she is still fussing and then,
having finally decided that everything is
all right, mails her letter. (Phew!)
TYPE c, or the anxious mail-schedule
consulter, is the man who rushes up to the
mail box with what is obviously an i'm
portant letter. He jerks his watch out of
his pocket, consults it gravely, looks as
gravey at the schedule on the box telling
how often the mail is removed, and then
stares pensively into space. meanwhile
nervousIy tapping the sidewalk with his
right toe. In case you don't know, he is
thinking. He is trying to figure out when
the letter. If dropped here and removed
at All p. NJ, will arrive at Big Horn,
Wyo.
III a post office were handy. he'd go in
and buy a special delivery stamp. But
the nearest post Office is ten blocks away
and he hasn't the time to go there. There
is nothing he can do about it. But he
likes to stand there gazing into space and
tapping his toe on the sidewalk. 1t is a
very becoming pose. After holding the
pose for minute his ears begin to grow
cold, whereupon he drops the letter into
the box and walks off gingerly.
TYPE ID, or the stamp-squeezer, is the
gentleman who thinks the stamp on his
letter isn't glued on securely enough. He
places the stamped part Of the epistle be
tween the thumb and forefnger of his
right hand and squeezes until he changes
the features of the figure on the stamp.
When this is over he places the letter
against the side of the mailbox, iattens
his palm against the letter and presses
some more. Sometimes he succeeds in
pressing the box hard enough to wrench
ii loose and send il flying into the street.
Whenever this happens the next day the
papers carry a headline. ANOTHER
MAIL RoBBER CAUGHT"
TYPE f, or the wholesale mailer, usu-
ally arrives at the letter-box with a stack
of mail two feet high. Staggering under
his load CT usually consists of such mo-
mentous documents as announcements of
the opening of new cleaning and press
ing shop on the corner of Whatzis and
Whoozis Streets, he reaches the mail box.
frantically holding the top of the pile down
with his chin to keep the letters from
flying all over creation. Then, feeling
blindly for the lid OF the box he mails
his missives one at time, while dozen
people, letters in hand. stand in back of
him swearing.
TYPE + is the man who drops his letter
in the box without any fuss and walks off
NY a.. n. Il.