CHRISTMAS MAILS.

Otago Daily Times, Issue 20288, 22 December 1927, Page 6

CHRISTMAS MAILS.

heavy consignments arrive. WORK HA2TDLBD EXPEDITR OUSLY. There is ovary indication that the amount of mail matter dealt with at the Dunedin Post Office during the four days previous to Christmas this year will be equal, and probably greater, than that of last year. During the past two days the mail room stall, parcel branch stall, and the letter carriers have been working at express speed in order to cope with the huge consignments of mails which arrive from north, south, east, and west every few hours. A Daily Times reporter was asked by the superintendent of mails to visit the mail room yesterday at the time when the floor was piled with bags and hampers. A staff, supplemented from other branches of the service, was literally surrounded by huge piles of letters, packets, newspapers, and other mail matter. As fast as the contents of one or half a dozen bags were sorted the heap was rebuilt by the shaking out of the contents of more and still more bags. A space had no sooner been cleared inside the doors where the mails are checked-in than another motor lorry backed up to the narrow landing with another consignment. An official ceases sorting to tally-in the load. The lorry quickly disgorges its quota, the official checks up his list, ana announces that the tally is correct. Then with renewed vigour the sorters tackle the fresh stacks of letters, neatly tied in bundles, the newspapers, and the hundreds of small parcels, and other matter. It is all done systematically. There is no confusion, and the work is carried on hour after hour. There is no stoppage at a period like the present. When one shift goes oil’ duty another takes tip the work without the loss of a minute. It is almost the same story in connection with the letter carrier branch. Thousands, even tens of thousands, of letters, cards, packets, and periodicals pass through this branch day and night at this time of the year. The letter carriers are working very long hours in order to cope with the rush of mails. In all parts of the city and suburbs these uniformed men are seen morning, afternoon, and evening this week burdened with leather bags and scarlet sacks almost bursting with mail matter. The men, who are being assisted in carrying the extra bags by boys on school vacation, trudge from house to house.

In the parcel branch of the service a large staff may be seen busy receiving parcels by the hundreds. These parcels are of various shapes and sizes, but it makes no difference what the size and shape may be. They are all deftly packed in wicker hampers and special cases, to be despatched by every train leaving for the north and south and by motor vans for suburban delivery. BIG TOTAL OF MAIL BAGS.

From Tuesday evening to 0 pjn. yesterday the total number of bags of moil “ checked-in ” at the Dunedin Poet Office, by way of the north, was 535. This alone was a huge total for the sorters to cope with, but other totals have to be added. Usually between SO and 90 bags are received daily frm the Southland, Central Otago, and other districts, but this total has been about doubled during the past two days. It will thus be seen that the mail room staff has sorted the contents of fully 800 bags during the past 30 hours. This ia considered by the oflicials os quick and efficient work. The bulk of the 535 bags received by way of the north included mails from overseas. By the first express from the north on Tuesday 100 bags containing mail matter from the United Kingdom and America were tallied-in at the mail room, and also 100 bags of correspondence, newspapers, and packets from northern parts of New Zealand. By the second express from the north on Tuesday evening 50 additional bags of United Kingdom mails were received, and by express goods train, which arrived nt Dunedin yesterday morning from Christchurch, another C 3 bags of United Kingdom and also 28 bags of North Island mails were tallied-in. These mails became divided on the southward rail journey owing to the heating of a van wheel-box at Ashburton on Tuesday. This resulted in a delay which was not relished by the postal officials at such a busy period. It 'was found necessary to transfer the whole mail to another wagon nt Ashburton, and consequently the mail peached Dunedin several hours later tiian was anticipated, and with the contents of the bags not sorted. Further trouble was experienced on Tuesday, as another wagon loaded to capacitv with bags and hampers was side-tracked at Oamaru owing to a wheel-box becoming over-heated. These mails were expected to reach Dunedin last night. By yesterday’s express trains from the north 153 bags, comprising English and Australian moils ex the Mamma at Wellington, came to hand, and also a large North Island mail. The contents of these two mails kept the late shift of sorters busy throughout last night. In order to copo with this big consignment assistance was obtained from all branches of tho Post Office service. Clerks who wield a pen throughout six days of tho week, were pressed into service. Of course, tire work was not now to thorn, as they had served an apprenticeship at sorting before passing to a higher grade. Tho mail room officials take a pride in their work and their staffs. They give every possible assistance at such a busy period, and that is the reason for tho presence of three schoolboys in the mail room during tho greater part of this week. These boys are employed in “facing up” tho letters for tho sorters as they are cleared in hundreds and thousands from tho main posting boxes and arrive in thousands from city and suburban street boxes and suburban branch offices. The boys are a groat help, and the three lads have become very proficient in the knack of “ facing up ” a letter. They have no spare minutes, as letters flow into tho mail room in a continual stream, not singly, but in tena of thousands. The mail room ’staffs will continue to work long hours until tho Christmas rush is over. To give some idea of the period now being devoted to the service by those men, it may be stated that tho first staff commences duty at 5 a.m., and is not released until 8 p.m. Another staff which commences duty at 1 p.m., and which at normal times finishes at 9 p.m., is nor released until midnight. Tho staff which commenced duty at 5 p.m. yesterday, and which at ordinary times finishes at 11 p.m., was not released until 1 o’clock this morning. What is known as tho night staff, \vhich usually commences sorting duty at 10.30 p.m., started at 0.50 last night. Tins staff is generally released at 5 a.m., but the men were kept on duty until t> o’clock this morning in order to deal with tho heavy outgoing early mails. While the public has been considerate in tbe way of posting correspondence and Christmas gifts reasonably early, some of the business firms in tho city have been neglectful in this respect. Some firms have loft it to tho last minute to post their trade calendars. As thousands ot those calendars pass through the post, tho lab; posting has added greatly to the work of the oflicials and staffs and the congestion in tho mail room. Early postage, whether it be correspondence, newspapers, packets, or parcels, is a great assistance to the mail room officials. Late postage of bulk matter is not appreciated by all those employed in handling his Majesty’s mails at this busy period of tho year.