Newspaper Page Text
51
Ipagtross ^eailliglit
THE DEAD LETTER OFFICE.
Vk PAR OCR, PxonusTOB.
J. M. TREEMAN, Sditou.
WAYCROSS, - -
Entered in the Poet Office it WajCTOM
ueccond-clue null mill metter.
The Largert Town Circulation.
The Large*! County Circulation.
The Largest Oenml Circulation.
Tim IIxaduoht visits more homes ti
i* reed by cum people
piper published in this k
of Ware.
Official Organ Of Charlton.
Official Organ of Coffee.
[ columns, a dark green
a iron railing abuts off
erka occupying the gal-
fUr ladies. Ilia sacks
TH£ CROSS HABE.
The red cross mark “Y* on the margin of
your paper denotes that we want
yoo to renew your aubacriptfon at once.
This paper will be mailed to rub-
criber* portage free, at the following
Invariably la advance. Ho deviation
rill be made from the above prices.
Court Calendar —Brunswick Circuit
Appling—Second Mondays in March
Wayne—Third Mondays in March and
October.
Wars-
Wovmnb
Coffee—Tuesday after second Monday
In April and November.
Chariton—Tuesday after third Monday
la April and November.
Camden—Fourth Mondays in April
and November.
Glynn—Beginning on the first Mon
days la May and December, and to con
tinue for two weeks, or as long as tbs
' Many dwellers on the Pacific coast are
asking that a bounty be put on seals be
cause they are so terribly destructive io
salmon. They rob many of thene
every fish, killing them in mere wanton-
Great Sacks of Mail Matter Received
Daily—How the letters are Dis
posed of—A Posto&lce Museum.
The Washington Star says that mail
matter for the Dead Letter Office comes
every day in great sacks from all parts
of the country. The sacks are shot up
stairs by an elevator into a great hall
with a lofty .ceiling running through two
The floor of this hall is covered
lesks, long tables, mid sacks, full
and empty. There is a busy corps of
clerks, some armed with sharp, glittering
knives, and others bending over led, *
A wide gallery runs around the hall,
ported by spiral columns, a dark g
curtain above the in
from view the clerks _ ^
lery, who are mostly ladies,
come piling in, and each day's mail brings
over 18,000 letters and packages the year
around. One hundred and four purs of
brisk hands seize upon this mass of mate
rial, and in a short time it is arranged,
classified, and the records made op, so
that all that enters the office can be ac
counted for.
There we
mail matter received
year, an increase of five per cent, over
that received during the previous year.
Of this number over 4,000,000 pieces are
dead matter, pure aim simple, 8,800,000
being ordinary unclaimed matters.
The letters find their way to the
ra* desk, which is a long table di
in to compartments by low wooden
partitions, and before eadrof the com
partments aits a cleric. There are eleven
openers at present. Their business is to
open letters. To read a letter is not only
against the regulations of the office, but
pinat the law. All day long they are
ged to sit there thrusting their long-
ited knife blades into one corner of
envelope and the
remove the contents,
envelope, and place it in a pile on their
desks, and then go on to the next. They
are all men—ana old men at that. Staid,
sober, steady-going men, fathers of fami-
Jiea, and patriarchs in the Church.
The women already number three-
fourths of the clerical force of the office,
and in their lofty perch in the gallery
they examine the opened letters for the
address of the writer, or some evidence
in which to base a reasonable conclu-
i as to the origin or destination of the
When money is found in the letters,
or, indeed, any inclosure, the openers are
required to make in a book provided for
the puipoee an entry of the amount of
money found and the character of the in
closure, of whatever kind. This record
into the hands of other clerks,
constituting a system of checks, which
ace has shown to
it is believed that there is' no loss
through dishonesty of the employes. The
system has been the growth of years, and
in the few cases that have occurred in
the past of dishonesty on the part of
1 Tho habit of tea-drinking must
growing on the English people. During
tho last fiscal year the receipts from taxes
on tea greatly increased, while the tax
on alcoholic liquors fell off $950,000, and
on wino $465,000.
The country is likely to have a rest
from the numerous traveling shows that
have usually perambulated from one end
of it to the other. The new Inter-State
commerce law adds so heavily to their
expenses that all the poorer ones will
succumb. There will still be enough of
amusement, furnished largely by local at
tractions, which will bebette
than heretofore. The best standard shows
will travel, as they always have done, and
be probably a)l the better for having fewer
competitors to draw away their patrons.
The increased traveling expenses of shows
under tho new law are estimated
$3,000,000 a year, which sum more than
wipes out the profits of many of them.
Mr. John Murdoch, In an article in the
American Naturalist, confutes tho com
mon notion that Esquimaux always eat
their food, raw, and devour enormous
quantities of blubber. At Point
Sir. 3(urdoch found that food wa
ually cooked, although certain
like the “black skin” of the whale,
usually eaten raw. Taking into
the fact that the Esquimaux have:
ter, cream, fat, bacon, olive oil, or lard,
he doubts whether much more fat is
turned by them than by civilized people.
At Point Barrow the fat of birds, and the
reindeer was freely partaken of, but com
paratively little actual blubber either of
the seal or whalo was eaten. “Seal or
whale blubber was too valuable—for
burning in the lamps, oiling leather, and
many other purposes, especially for
' trade.?
For some ten years past New Orleans,
St. Louis, and other Southern cities have
been trying to bring cents into circula
tion, and desperate indeed have been the
efforts to accomplish this. Several houses,
says the New Orleans Timet-Democra f ,
have declared in favor of cents, to find
their introduction far more difficult than
was iinagiucd. A newspaper imported
some barrels of the coins and put them
forth, only to find out that they returned
in a very short time. Tho idea of car
rying tho measure through by one grand
movement, all acting together, failed.
Tho people were not acquainted with
cents and refused them; and many deal-
era, particularly tho small ones, with
whom cents wonld have come into play
and who would be most benefited by
their circulation, held back. But al
though these spasmodic efforts failed,
the end sought for is being slowly but
surely accomplished. The cent which
could not he forced suddenly on the com
munity is growing into favor. A large
number of houses are now willing to ac
cept it and make their change according
ly, and the public is beginning to recog
nize that the cent ia of some value after
all. Strange to say, at the beginning
of this movement, the small dealers still
hold buck. Coppers will be taken in
payment by almost any large dry-goods
house in the city, but the candy and ba
nana peddler on the corner opposite ig
nores this movement and is afraid of thf
copper currency. .. ..
is yearly Intrusted to the mails, and,
though the number of such letters that
find their way to the Dead Letter Office
is probably only a small proportion of the
entire number mailed, yet last year there
was received at the office over $31,000 in
to owners, nearly $3,
hands of poetmastcra awaiting restora
tion, and over $6,000 could not be re
stored and was placed in the United
States Treasury, where it remains for a
period of four years, subject to be re
claimed by the owners.
Perhaps the most interesting feature of
the wore of the office is the treatment of
letters which are sent there because of in
sufficient or incorrect addresses. There
letters represent for the 'most part the
carelessness and the hurry of the Ameri
can people. A business man in this city,
writing a letter to an acquaintance w
Philadelphia, tor example, dashes ol ]
at the close of the letter, and,
of the next subject that demands 1
attention, and instead of writing Phila
delphia he scribbles off the worn ’•city,”
as he does a hundred times-a day, sup
posing, of course, that the majority of
his letters are local. He docs this the
more reudlly if his correspondent'
address in Philadelphia happens to b
one of the numbered streets. When th
letter comes to the Dead Letter Office it
is handed over to a lady clerk, who'
referred to her over a thousand of such
letters each day. By long practice with
dealing with such conundrums tht
address is properly amended and the
people drop letters into
any address at all, others write the ad
dress so illegibly and with such
disregard for the rules of ortho-
r phy that no one but
able to decipher th<
Mistakes of all kinds
NEWS AND NOTES FOB WOMEN.
Short-sleeved mantles are much in
vogue.
Pale drab is the popular color for dress
ing tailor suits.
Black surah is the proper silk for half
mourning frocks.
ss enrich
i the needle.
The female students in the colleges of
the United States nnmber 18,000, it ia
id.
Russian braid ss heavy ss small rope
cord is used as a finish to outer gar
ments. _
Horse hair is once more utilized in the
costume and makes most cool and dura
ble bonnets.
Chenille bonnets are a novelty, and a
pretty one. The frame is of wire covered
py the chenille.
Lace plays an important part in ladies’
toilets just now, Ming used for every
imaginable purpose.
Scarf mantles are again in vogue for
spring wear and are among the most
convenient of wraps.
Fine twilled cashmere will be for over
dresses where there Is a petticoat of
moire in street costume. t
oh_. F
costume, par
ticularly by young ladies.
Mrs, Cox, of Halderness, N. H., who
died recently at an advanced age, *■ ’
the whooping cough when she was
The - - _ .
dded
take her husband’s .name unless she
.chooses.
The newest bonnets are in cap shape,
with very long crowns, and there is a very
decided tendency toward lowering the
trimming*,
Mrs. Bishop H. Warren, said to be the
richest w«man in Colorado, made hex
own money by cattle raising, and is now
worth $10,000,000.
Satin
fashionable
except as a foundation for transparent
lace or gauze dresses.
Rosenburgcr, of the Treasury De
partment, at Washington, is one of the
best counterfeit detectors in the world.
She gets $1,800 a year.
The polonaise, in both open and closed
shapes, is steadily gaining favor, and is
the prominent feature of many dis
tinguished looking toilets.
Harper 9 » Bazar concedes the fact that
silks have again come into the favor they
ijoyed before wool fabrics rivaled them
i visiting and home frocks.
In Wyoming, where women vote, the
law expressly provides that there shall be
no discrimination on account of sex in
the pay for any kiud of work.
Lri chewed'gi c
•he lost control of her
jaw, and it took Two doctors and three
weeks* time to get it into place again.
A club of girls in Dorsetshire, Eng
land, are unde# vows to make their own
clothes and never to allow a servant, to
make their I^ds or dust their drawing
•oras.
A pretty young girl from the Sand
wich Inlands is studying law at the Uni
versity ef Michigan, and it is said that
i very bright and promising
scholar. ~ _
In Mexico it is the custom to address
ladies by their given names, even when
they are almost strangers. Neglect to
comply with this custom will give offence
tc many women.
in England single women and widows
have had full municipal suffrage for
eighteen years. Mr. Gladstone says they
exercise it “without detriment, and with
great advantage.”
Novel turbans are of straw, which is
used like cloth or other texture, being
folded into shape for the crowns, and ar
ranged in loops or forked ends like rib-
' >n for trimming.
A regard ring is one set with stones,
the initial letters of which, when placed
in a certain order, spell the word regard.
They are asfollows: 1, ruby; 2, emerald;
8, garnet; 4, amethyst; 5, ruby; 6, dia-
made in
addressing letters. The wrong State is
given, or else the wrong town, perhaps
■ personal ■■■
address in rhymed verse, and, like a go
deal of more pretentious vrraemakin
sometimes it is possible to ascertain t
author’s meaning, and then again the
meaning eludes the most careful study.
When it is considered that the combined
carelessness and ignorance of the entire
country has a daily and hourly opportu
nity to develop an aptitude for blunder
ing, it is surprising that the proportion
of such letters is not much larger than it
really is. But when samples of thi
of the mail bag of the Dead Letter
are examined, it is surprising to learn
that 00 per cent, of the letters of this
character which are received each day and
corrected are delivered to the persons ad
dressed.
When letters contain no enclosures,
either of money or merchandise, and
every method has been exhausted for re
turning them either to the writer or the
person addressed, they are bundled to
gether and sold for waste paper. There
are over 2,000,000 letters and
which are disposed of each year
way, and the revenue derived from the
sale is turned into the Trei
with the money received
which no owner can be found. Last year
there was nearly $9,000 deposited in the
Treasuiy on this account, A visit to the
museum of this office shows the manifold
uses to which the mails are put in the
transportation of matter other than letters.
In this collection, which preserves onl;
the most notable objects, may be fount
booty shoes, coats, shawls, bed quilty
hoop 6kirty rattlesnakes, horned toads,
? 'loves, lace collars, photographs, jewelrv,
alse hair, etc. Tie articles received in
the mails are retainel for two years, and
then, if not called for, are sold at public
auction. The sale last year realized over
$3,000.
A Boston bark recently aailed for three
hours through a cloud of dust, near New effect
Zealand, just after a volcanic eruption ~ "
A. R. BENNETT.
(Near Grand Central Hotel)
WAYOROSS, GhA. __ ~
DEALER IN
General Merchandise,
Gents’ and Ladies’ Famishing
Gents,’ Ladies’ and Children’s Boots and Shoes,
Full Line of Family Groceries, Com Oats Bran
and other Plantation Farm and Hill Supplies.
PM Hines, Weak aai Other Necessaries.
Saddlery, Stoves, Sewing Machines, Buckets,
TubSjand Other Articlestoo Numerous
To Mention*
GIVE ME A TRIAL.
A. R. BENNETT.
MONEY TALKS AT WAYCR0SS1
Hardware, Tinware, Agrricultural
Implements.
Heavy Wagons and Harness.
For Mills and Turpentine Distilleries, •
Baggies and Bugy Harness, Ranges,
Stoves, and House-Furnish
ing Goods, Guns,
Pocket and Table Cutlery, Powder, Shot. &c.
Blackshear & Mitchell,
Ma, 2542m
W. M. WILSON,
WAYOEOSS,,
C3-HJOE/GH A
FANCY AND FAMILY
GROCERIES.
SPECIALTIES s
Magnolia Hama, High Grade Sugars, Coffees. Rice, Butter, Lard, Bacon, Dried
Fnri^ Irish Potatoes, Segars, Pipes, Tobaccos, Canned Goods, Etc.
fWTricea on all goods warranted to be as low as .the quality of goods c“
be purchased anywhere. Connected with the store is a
BILLIARD & POOL ROOM
All Goods Delivered Free.
[novl-ISm
HOT WEATHER SUITS.
A California woman, in tying to make
a cradle for her baby, hit on an idea and
intented an orange l>ox. She now owns
and runs the factory which makes nine-
tenths of the orange boxes for the Pa-
the recent revivals in dress
goods is moussclinc de laine, a material
much favored in the days of our grand
mothers. It will be employed in com
bination with figured textures rather
than for entire costumes.
.White undressed kid mousquetaire
gloves are worn at weddings by both the
bride and bridesmaids. In the few
instances where the latter still cling to the
tan-colored Suede gloves, they are in
much lighter shades than formerly.
Saleswomen in many of the Philadcl-
lia shops are prohibited from fine dress-
ig. In one establishment the girls are
required to dress in black. In another
dark colors—blue, brown or black—are
rexuestek, and rich jewelry is not per
mitted.
The Lutherans are about to introduce
into this country an order of deaconesses.
John D. Lanekemnn, of Philadelphia,
has given $1,000,000 to establish a Ger-
ital in that city, in which these
school for their education.
the numerous new methods of
ring which are being constantly
introduced, the side draperies are those
usually most favored, affording, as they
elaborate
material of the lower
inels or intricate
The tailor-made costume is still favored
for brides’ traveling dresses, but is much
less severe than formerly. Soft camel's
hairs, in fawn, gray or gray-blue shades,
are the favorite materials, with some
times a plaid skirt or one of fine checks
or stripes in very dark shades.
Queen Elizabeth’s love of dress and
her vanity were very marked, She had
3,000 dresses and eighty wigs. She was
always open to flattery, and dispensed
coquettish attention* to handsome gen
tlemen of every age. She tried to monop
olize the chilv&lric devotion of all her
court.
At the east end of London shirts are
made at four cents eich, and the sewing
girl must furnish her own thread. Six
shiTts & day are a posability with steady
application, giving a net result of less
than twenty-for cent*. Button holes
made at from two to eight cents per
dozsn. ; - , * i
At weddings where there are only two
or four bridesmaids, they usually dress
alike, either in white or rose-color, but
when there are four or six each pair wears
a different color, and as one of each pair
stands on either sile of the bride the
very pretty. Old-rore, lavender.
Nib* given and jonquil yellow are very
Country Merchants who cater to a trade that they are anxious to hold, can hav
no better medium than our
Fashionable Clothing.
Having all our Suits made under Personal Supervision, and con
sulting always the prevailing requirements as to Fabrics
and Cut, we are able to offer superior in
ducements to the trade in the way of
Job Lots and Extra Drives, always
the latest Metropolitan Fashions!
. |3J-Special Sixes in Suits to fit Fat, Thin, Short or Toll men—da
Qur C. O. D. System
careful attention; rules for self-measurement sent free c
Suita gent to responsible parties with privilege of examination before pay
ing. Money refunded in every case where satisfaction is not given.
OUR SPRING AND RUMMER SUITS, HATS—Soft, Stiff and Straw,
UNDERWEAR, NECKWEAR, FURNISHINGS, ETC n
Excel any "Similar Stock South
Prices alwaya tire Lowest. Consult u* before baying.
161 Congress St., - - SAVANNAH, GA
B. H. LEVY * BRO.
REDDING & WALKER,
Physicians and Surgeons,
WHOLESALE AND RETAIL.
Druggists and Apothecaries.
PAINTS, OILS AND
VARNISHES,
Perfumery, Soaps and Brashes
"Wholesale Agents for I*. P, p # •
ia under the care of one skilled in the theory and
practice of pharmacy, and customers may rely on the careful prepara-ion of pro
scriptiona. ~ ^ ' [novlO
Orders for Fancy and Plain
Job Printing receive prompt at
tention at f hia office.
janlO-ltm-vogo
Wholesale Dealers and Manufacturers’ Agents,
WAYCROSS, GA.
UHLFELDER A CO.,
Waycross, Georgia.
Furniture of ill Stylus M
CHAMBER SETS, IN PINE, POPLAR & WALNUT.
(o)
Mattresses, Springs, Matting.
Cnl lilts Met, Balt Cities, losiito Ha
ETC., ETC.
-W-
Please call and Examine our stock and we will Convince You.^Jgf
Agents for LUDDEN & BATES 8. M. H. Pianos and Organs, on Easy Term*
may 20-12m
FMCY DBMSS GOODS,
MILLINERY, NOTIONS
GENERAL MERCHANDISE.
C. C. VARNEDOE,
VALDOSTA, GEORGIA,
Is headquarters for Milliner, and Dress Goods in this section of Georgia H
has in store sndis constantly iscdTingsU tbs latest designs and noTsltias in that
line. He is headquarters for
OTJSTOIM; - IMZ-AJDIE SHOES.
He is also headquarters for General Merchandise, and all other articles found in
in elaborate establishment dealing in specialties and first-class goods. Orders bj
rasil promptly attended to and satisfaction guaranteed. sef.O-12-m
K H. CRAWLEY
DEALER IN
DRY GOODS AID lOflOlG,
BOOTS, SHOES AND HOSIERY,
• at figures so low that I defy competition. I also carry a full supply of
liraWUD&MEWl
' A full lin# of Flncj and Family Groceries always on hand. morl-SHAm
GENERAL MERCHANDISE,
WAYCROSS, GEORGIA.
My Stock ia complete, and embrace* everything usually kept in a first-da*
store. I make a specialty of
JOB PRINTING
Neatly and Expeditiously
EXECUTED
AT THIS OFFICE I