Daily Kennebec journal. [microfilm reel] (Augusta, Me.) 1870-1975, 1924-07-15

Have you ever inscribed letters to
two young ladies and absentminded-
ly put them In the wrong envelopes
so that the right letter was mailed to
the wrong girl and vice versa? And.
after having dropped the letters In
the nearest mail box and returned
home, suddenly out Of clear sky had
come the dreadful knowledge that
| you were due for an uncomfortable
time when those letters arrived at
their destinations? SO with fear
following your futtering footsteps
you HE'D yourself hurriediy to the
mail box where you dropped the
letters and stood there biting your
fingernaiis and showing other signs
OF nervousness until the mail col
lector arrived to open the box and
collect the mail, there to be told
by that worthy individual that you
were "outta luck" your letters were
then the property OF the United
States Government?
Has 1t ever happened to you? II
It has, do not feel too badly about it.
You are only one of hundreds OF
people in Augusta who do not know
| that letters and parcels posted for
delivery by u. 8. mail can easily be
withdrawn by proper application.
This Is a fact little known by the
majority OF people. who think that
once a letter Is mailed 1t is impos-
sible to regain it. Even mail or
packages destined for points abroad
may be regained. Letters which are
already on their way to distant
cities and towns may be stopped and
| returned to the sender-if one
knows how to go about it.
You are met with a rebuff when
seeking to regain your letter from
the mail collector for a strict law
refuses to allow him to return to
the mailer any mail taken from
city or town mailbox. Such mail
must go to the local postoffice. This
means protection for the users OF
the u. s. mailing system. for II mail
were allowed to be withdrawn this
way anyone knowing OF letter
written to a. certain person or hrn
could easily withdraw the same by
describing its address to the col
| lector. Once a letter is dropped into
n mailbox 1t becomes the property
of the United States Government
and is surrounded by all the intri'
cate machinery and power of the
United States. Only by going
through a certain procedure car
the mailer hope to recover 1t.
Such procedure is as follows Ihe
mailer must file an application WIZ
! his local postmaster on blank forms
always available. He describes the
article. letter or package. giving the
address upon 1t and the place 1t was
! mailed. The postmaster compares
this with the mail that has been cef-
| lected which is already in the post
office. If the article in question Is
among this mail and the postmaster
Is satisfied the article is identlca
with that described in the applica'
ton he will make delivery to the
applicant who then will sign re-
| ceipt for same.
Many times, however. the article
or letter has been dispatched from
the local postoffice and is rushing
on it's way en- route to it's destina'
ton. The applicant will fill out hi:
| application as before whereupon the
| postmaster will telephone or tele-
| graph, generally the latter. to the
| postmaster of the postoffice of the
ADDRESSED, or to some branch In the
Railway Mail Service where sucf
| mail will be handled previous to the
postoffice of the person addressed
| The article or letter will then be
| withdrawn en- route and returned tc
the postoffice from which 1t wal
originally mailed. In this case
! though the local postmaster sends
| the telegram. its cost Is paid by the