7,200 PARCELS.

Auckland Star, Volume XLVII, Issue 237, 4 October 1916, Page 4

7,200 PARCELS.

IN TWO DAYS. I PRESENTS FOR THE BOYS 'Mjjf. B TH X FK.O3ST. B ! RECORD CHRISTMAS MATTY "; I HUGE RUSH THIS MORN&q||| I "You can trust Auckland people-fc leave everything until the last mom«t. I They'll all come ruehing in at .10 o'clock I to-morrow and blame us if they mi«ti» ■ bus." So quoth a melancholy port ottiip;B official yesterday in surveying the.iUMji':- H of parcels for the Expeditionary Fonat . B which, however, were riot nearly numerous enough- to satisfy judgment of the post office merely presaged an extraordinary nA I at. the last moment. '•'■.'■ -. The mail closed nominally at ; lft|jf|fe this morning. . We say nominally, for m < post office, in. spite of all the ted toft-' with whichit U traditionally tied|ie||| still has some lurking human eentimrjjfii||| and there was no sudden shutting, iawgM on fond relatives of soldier boya tick "of twenty to'eleven. On. trary, considerable latitude was afl6wSil| ';£NEXTRAORDINARY. SCENE...''.': . And the scene throughout this cor*.; ing beggared description. ..By tiiffll||| and ferry boat people poured into tfc»»; city with parcels, and by nine o'clock tbt parcels depot of the G.P.O. was betiqgei An hour later and the eaid depot solutely packed by a surging mob, . mostly vomen folk,- straggling to.j(Mh| entrance. The room itself. was iltoi; B chock-a-block, tbe : stairway was blojjnd, B and people waited in a queue' outtjdt. ■ Inside the office people straggled''toimpß to the counter, and used other people's backs for writing TWte; ;B for filling in the receipt cards, mmt. by, the office. Many a perspiring ,btM»|| of a parcel waited for half ah homfto B .edge up to the counter, only to through not observing .the- regulattiipigj B for encasing the goods in a canvas leef* j his Christmas present could not be <•&§-■ " TOST OmCE'TCESOURCE. \ I Prompt steps were taken, by th« pyiJS'-B cffice officials ■■to.-.-Cope. •withi, thejordinary pressure. Five ,extra. were receiving tie" .Auckland East .office for the reception of parceh, while Btairs ' arrangements were weighing at the inquiry office receiving , at the refiristration depi*f' B ment. • Ordinarily, a staff is put on to deal., with an tionary Force" mail, hut "fifteen ,ext *|pß men were employed over and niiTnber. Early in tlie morning -P"^S^;B to arrive by the hundred Jifflipß speciality of : and deliwHjj^j Christmas parcels, an-1 these Trere. re- B ceived at the bac'-c of the paTcele eflkt ■ and promptly dealt ;w:th. One oflfa*s B was'sotely en'saied- on ■STrpervißioh, "wW*-- I at the top of the Gtaira another oflSHri I we told off to act .-»-• guide, and;.friend ; to the.pubUß,.. f B Many 'women struggled through with five or six pared*. CKrjjtSlsß mas cakes and;puddings! Heavens;jjtfcii|mß seemed to be sufficient of rich to make the entire force fciliou», whole month after the celebration of comiti* of peace t)h ! earth- and towards men. ■ - -, — H ■-" - ; EVERY "PARCEL TO GO;v B Workins wit-'h--amaziiig- 'speed ; defatigability, the "etaff tackled the en*® ■mous task in-front of. itjwith. ness and -and r »fter M» ■ close of fhe mail the Chief was able to give , the «w»ir-jBJ parcel accepted; would be time to catch the mail.- Everyone m Bj saw the rush of the elcventh-lom degSjjgl H tors'inust have marvelled at iihe in which i.he traffic was dei>lt"'with;' win admit that the feat of the post was a triumph of organisation. One ture, of _ this year's rinail. which -..gnMlijfgj facilitated fhe work of the' stikff feguhvtion in regard -to the canvae Thie not only ensured legibility delibility of addressing, but a \ neatness of packing which mint been a rare treat to those aceostamedH i I handling slovenly and flimsxly pad B THE ILETTER MAIL. I licet" there should "be ihy Btanding on the - part of' tlie':'|Hißß<i"ilfei| roayagain be pointed on? thai I the "parcel mail closed to-day the ChrWSlji nvas letter mail remains open «nt2T4S§i on the 27th inst. The relative.friends of the Expeditionary Tense ■»!• ■ intend Eending Christmae card* "«*;€l peetings to those in the trenche* be-weD-ad-rieed to post eafly. '- ; ■ -."> -THE VOLUME OF TRAFEK. ■ Th* appearance of the parcel ' d#*§!| alter- the mail had closed testified 1 strenubus experience of the etaS. 1W H floor was literally covered with ol brown paper, fragmente of •trin£ : Mßl and -acorea of eppOed reeen* A rough counting iip snowrf terday -afternoon 2,792 parcel* -mm*' 9 handed over the.counter, and niormng, making a to«sil for the half-daye of Fifty-eight mail were forwarded to WellißetenSiiißl night,-and 270 this-morning. fl