Evening star., 1926-12-01
POST OFFICE FORCE
IS READY FOR RUSH
$50 Carriers and 400 Clerks
Extra Will Handle Christ
/. mas Mail Avalanche.

Forces Of the Washington post
Office are prepared to deal with the
biggest Christmas invasion of mail
matter in its history. Postmaster W.
NJ. Mooney announced today after re-
viewing his troops of clerks and car
riers and taking stock of reserve
transportation and delivery brigades,
available for use at a moments
notice.
A regiment of extra employees. num-
bering approximately $50 carriers and
400 clerks, has already been recruited
and so disposed that detachments are
available for use when needed. The
extra forces are now made up and no
additional men are needed. Postma ster
Mooney stated.
Card-Mailing Plan.
A surprise attack on the legions of
Christmas cards, which will pour into
the office was launched yesterday
through announcement that cards
destined for local delivery may be
mailed now and held at the post office
until December %, when they will be
delivered in lme to reach their ad-
dressees by Christmas. Such cards
must not be cropped in boxes. bu;
must be presented in person at the
main office or the subStatiUnS. Estab-
lishment of tnis service marks an in
nova ton in the Christmas mail han
ding campaign of the Washington
office. postal officials stated.
All postal service, except special de
livery, will stop at noon Christmas
day and a special pre- Christmas cam
paign has been inaugurated to urge
patrons to mail early"
Early Mailing Drive.
Even with the reserve forces the
task of emerging victorious from the
struggle OF handling an anticipated
100000 cards. besides tons of pack
ages and other mail matter before
Christmas. will prove virtually impos-
sible unles the public does its share
by mailing early, Postmaster Mooney
explained.
A special committee of FIVE, headed
by w. Fl. HaycoCk, assistant post
master, has arranged for $50 signs,
stresSing the necessity of early mail
ing, to he carried on the street cars
and has already mailed $4,000 cards
TO Washington people giving mailing
schedules and emphasizing the pur-
poses of the mail-early campaign.
Another batch of IS 900 cards will be
mailed Tuesday and 25 900 additional
cards will be distributed in the city.
Assistant Postmaster Haycock an
nounced
Some Packages Mailed.
The full force of the invasion of
Christmas mail is expected to hit the
post office about December 49, 4 few
packages have been mailed already
10 foreign countries and early mail
lngs to other points Indicate a Christ.
mas rush that will tax the full
nf hp al
The War Department has loaned
the post office so trucks. bringing the
available fleet up to lS0 trucks. each
capable of carrying q ton and q half
of mail matter.
Shock troops. composed Of college
students from all of the Washington
colleges and from several Eastern
coileGes, including Brown. Yale,
Princeton and Dartmouth have al
ready been enlisted and will be
brought into action q few days before
Christmas. as soon as the vacations
start in the colleges.
Mailing Schedule.
Practically all of the members Of
the college brigades, Postma ster
Mooney explained, are men who are
working their way through school and
many OF them have had postal expe-
tISIltc uulIH pIeNlOu III ISL mas non
days. Some of them are eX-service
men and, in every possible case. ex-
service men have been given the pref
erenCe in making up the roll of extra
Christmas workers, he added.
In order 10 aid the forces of the
Washington Post Office as we'll as to
insure the delivery Cf mail on time
the public is urged to mail according
to the following schedule and to wrap
well and pack securely. California.
Far West and Southwest. December
Ii; Illinois. Iowa and States of Middle
West, December Is: southern States.
December lh Ohio. Indiana and ken
lucky, December 16; New England
States. December II: New York. Penn
sylvania and New Jersey. December
is; Virginia, Maryland, West Virginia
and North Carolina. December 20;
Washington, D. c.. December 81.