OUR BABY POST OFFICE

Evening Star, Issue 21232, 13 October 1932, Page 15

OUR BABY POST OFFICE

IN JETTY STREET, OF CORRUGATED IRON The committee of the Otago Early Settlors’ Association is very pleased to receive from Mr Charles Campbell, of Sherwood street, Lower Hutt, a drawing in pencil of the forerunning Post Office in. Dunedin, reproduced below.

Mr Campbell writes;—“ A few weeks ago I saw in print a picture of the proposed now chief Post Office for Dunedin. As an old-time resident of Dunedin 1 was much interested in that picture. There arose before my mental vision a picture of the Chief Post Office there as it appeared to me in 1862, when as a lad of about nine years I arrived in Dunedin from Scotland. 1 made a little drawing and showed it to

my old friend, Mrs Charles Adams, of Bellevue, Lower Hutt, knowing that it would interest her, and she suggested that I send it to the Otago Early Settlors’ Association. The building represented was built of corrugated iron, and situated in Jetty street about 50ft from Princes street. It formed one of a small group of similar buildings. The windows wore not of glass, but of wood—really shutters, which were opened when knocked upon. The three on the right band side were exclusively for Jotter delivery, each window representing a section _of the alphabet. Notice the barrier's or rails opposite the windows, intended, to keep the people in

order—a necessary arrangement, particularly when the Home mail arrived. The two front windows, facing Jetty street, were for other postal business, stamps, etc. The doorway shown was not an entrance, but a little lobby containing about fifty private boxes. I suppose the entrance was at the back.” A Dunedin resident who saw the drawing at the Early Settlers’ office comments thus: “ It reminds me of the

Post Office that served Wellington when I first went there in 1870. It had the same arrangements. The customer stood in the street and knocked on a window, and in duo course a clerk appeared to ask what was wanted. A story current at the time is worth repeating. An old printer set up a little office and issued therefrom a tiny newspaper. One of his odd ways was to tie into bags all the coppers he received, and one day, needing stamps, he carried a bagful to the Post Office and asked for stamps to the value of the contents. “How many?” “I don’t know.” “ Take them away and count them.” Nettled by the replies, the printer thought out an appropriate

rejoinder. He untied the bag, knocked, and said: “One stamp—there’s the money.” The stamp was produced and down wont the shutter. Waiting till the clerk had resettled inside, the customer operated again with the same formula. The clerk glared as ho complied. Window down again and a fair interval, and Mr Printer once more applied, whereupon the clerk exploded and asked that the bag be handed in.”