Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1957-02-05
The
Rambler
P. O. Cancels Its
Decline Service

We never should have asked
all those questions. 1t would
have been much better to let
the imagination run wild.
A reader, who obviously also
reads other things, reports this
intriguing paragraph in a
publication called Postal Re-
view:
I'm accordance with notice
received from the postal au-
thorities of Mexico, queen bees
and accompanying worker bees
are no longer to be accepted
in the mail for that country"
The entire picture at once
leaped to mind.
A shipment of bees, queen
and workers, arrives at La
Casa de CorreoS, in say,
AguaScalienteS.
1t Is near siesta time, and
the postmaster is idly attempt
ing, with a post office pen, to
doodle on an official form.
An assistant is carrying the
crate, queen bee and workers
safely inside, across the room.
Perhaps it is uery close to
SieSta time, and the assistant
is already half asleep. At any
rate, the crate drops to the
floor.
Carambd!
When the excitement is over,
the postmaster sends a sting
ing letter to his superior. His
superior appeals to an even
higher authority. A few weeks
later the paragraph appears
in the Postal Review.
But no, We had to ask all
those questions. A man at the
Post Office Department said
that a couple of months ago
a shipment of bees did get
loose in a New York post Of
flee. But in the case of Mex
leo, it wasn't like that at all.
1t was more a matter of red
tape.
The queen bee, apparently,
has a delicate constitution.
BY the time a shipment goes
through the required routine
Of post office, customs and
agricultural inspection, the
queen is too often dead.
Route
The slogan of the ocean
liner ad men-"Half the fun
is getting there"-seems to
have been adopted by the
Government.
A visitor at the Commerce
Building inquired at the in
formation desk inside the
Fourteenth street entrance
how to- reach Room $500.
He was told the simplest
way would he to take an ele-
vatOr to the third floor,
turn right down the c0rri-
dor as far as he could 60,
then turn left as far as he
could 60. At that point, he
had a choice. He could take
either the elevator or the
stairs back down to the
second floor and he'd be
practically at the door.
Scholars
A lady who has just joined
the office staff of a local en-
cheering firm looked forward
eagerly to mingling with great
minds.
Her eagerness has been
somewhat tempered by a hall
way incident. She was walk
ing down the hall when she
spotted five of the staff en-
gineers deep in conversation.
AS she passed, she heard one
of them ask the others:
did you see Crusader Rabbit
on television last night?"
Sigh
1t seems like yesterday
when the final leaves were
raked, the Spreader put
away, and we'd just settled
down to enjoy a long winter
by the fireplace.
And now along comes that
old spOilspOrt, the Post Of
flee, pointing out that Feb
ruary is the month for ship
ping plants for spring plant
ing and offering advice on
how to arrange for delivery
il you're not at home.
The advice goes on:
BEST of all, il you are
home, have the ground well
prepared and make your
planting as soon as possible
after delivery. Early plant
ing, liberal watering and
following the sender's in
structiOns will insure best
growth Of all plant ma
terials."
And, IL anybody over there
has had experience with