POSTMAN’S KNOCK?

Star (Christchurch), Issue 17231, 24 December 1923, Page 8

POSTMAN’S KNOCK?

HEAVY CHRISTMAS MAILS “ SHOP EARLY ” CAMPAIGN HAS GOOD RESULTS. There are very few houses in the city and suburbs that will not receive a call from the postman to-day, although in some cases it will be nearly nine o’clock to-night before householders receive their second delivery of letters. The past few days have been strenuous days for the staff of the Christchurch Post Office, but early this afternoon, when a “Star” reporter called at the sorting rooms, he found that the great bulk of the Christmas mail nad been oleared out. The handling of the enormous quantities of letters and packages that have passed through the Post Office within the past few days has been conducted with a maximum of efficiency, and the Chief Pastmaster, Mr J. E, Broadfoot, informed the reporter that all mail matter received up to the time of the ordinary afternoon deliveries will he delivered today.

“The early shopping campaign conducted by the ‘Lyttelton Times* and ‘Star’ has had very good results,” said Mr Broodfoot. “There has been a steady flow of letters and packages for the past fortnight, and not such a tendency to post everything on the last day. ’Hie amount of mail matter handled this Christmas is much in excess of former years.”

Usually the letter-carriers left the Post Office for their rounds at 8 a..m., but to-day it was 11.16 before the last man got away, so great was the quantity of mail matter to be handled. Tliere are sixty-two deliveries in the city and suburbs, and in addition to the letters that the postmen carried in their satchels over 600 extra, bags of letters and packages will be delivered by them. Each postman took two or three extra hags with him. and five motor vans were used to carry the re-mainder—sixty-two bags—to * various places where they would be picked up by the letter-carriers. A typical example of the task confronting the letter-carriers to-day is afforded by the Cashmere delivery. The postman set out from the Chief Post Office on the first delivery at 11.15 a.m. {instead of 8 a.m.), taking with him twenty-six large bundles of letters, each bundle containing about 200 letters, in addition to a big quantity of packages. He will probably not get through his first delivery until about 6 p.m. Then he has to attend to his second delivery, and it will probably be nine o’clock to-night before he completes it. Twenty-five boys have been brought on for the purpose of assisting the letter-carriers in their work, and altogether tho total extra staff at the Post Office is about fifty.

At nine o’clock last night the posting boxes at the Post Office were so congested that people had great difficulty in getting letters posted. The huge quantity of letters and packets overflowed the baskets provided for them and filled up the whole of the space back to the wall.

An “ 5.0.5.” was sent to the cjhief Postmaster and he brought on five sorters, who worked right through the night dealing with the mails. “People were posting letters and packages right on till midnight, but the greatest rush was between 6 and 9 p.m.,” remarked one of the sorters. “ It seemed as though they were posting their Christinas mail while going to and from church. At 6 p.m. the posting boxes were examined and there seemed to be plenty of room for all that was likely to come. The postingbox in the Cathedral Square tramway shelter was also filled up to the top.” Friday night was the busiest time at the posting boxes. For an hour and a half packages were being posted as fast as they could he taken away, a constant stream of baskets being wheeled from the boxes to the sorting tables. Packets caused the greatest congestion. There seemed to be no end to them.

At .the parcels post branch in Hereford Street the work has been distributed over the past week, thanks to the success of the early shopping campaign. A tally of the bags and hampers handled on December 20, 21, 22 and 24 is being taken at the principal post offices. On the first three days of thjs tally 618 bags and hampers were received and 1084 dispatched at the Christchurch parcels office, compared with 577 received and 1418 dispatched on the corresponding three days last year. The falling off in the number of parcels dispatched is attributed to the earlier posting. For the North Island alone. 144 hampers were dispatched on December 17 162 on December 18, 158 on December 19, and only 83 on December 22. one of the days reckoned in the tally. The rush in the parcels branch really commenced on Monday, December 17.

Fortunately the oostal officials: have not had an English mail to add to their worries this Christmas An English and Australian mail, comprising about 430 bags, is due to arrive tomorrow. and tbe sorting staff ami let-ter-carriers will have another busy time on Thursday moruing.

There will be a counter delivery at the Post Office from 7.30 till 5.30 tonight.