CHRISTMAS HUSTLE.

Waikato Times, Volume 116, Issue 19460, 27 December 1934, Page 6

CHRISTMAS HUSTLE.

POST OFFICE BUSY. increases in traffic. OFFICIALS’ LONG SHIFTS. For the staff of the Chief Post Office at Hamilton Christmas has been tp holiday. Doubled shifts with continuous work for 15 to 18 hours each day wore required of many members of the staff and the heavy Increases that were recorded In postal, telegraph and toll telephone traffic have required the greatest efficiency from Jl departments.

A comprehensive statistical review of the Christmas period, given to the Waikato Times by the Chief Post master, Mr W. P. Aldridge, afternoon, show that the enterprising steps for popularising the services taken by the department have borne fruit to an extraordinary degree. There w'as a marked increase in tne volume of mail matter, and pae'e s and parcels formed a heavy loadlf the postmen as they went on the! rounds. It has been a strenuous week for the mail carriers and sorters who working very, long hours,, have> Je i deluged by the quantity of which constantly poured m either roi transmission or distribution. But if the work at all post offices in the Hamilton district was heavy it was a hundred-times more so at the Frankton Junction Railway post office which acts as a distributing centre. Here employees worked as much as 18 hours a day, carrying and sorting the heavy hags of mail. It was unbelievably tiring work.

Abnormally Long Hours.

Nearly 1700 more telegrams were handled by the Chief Post Office than was the case during the corresponding period last year. This year most of the messages w’ere lodged on Christmas Eve whereas in 1933 the bulk of the work was spread over December 22 and 24, So it was that, although operators and despatch officials worked abnormally long hours they were recalled on Christmas Day and the Christmas telegraph traffic was not clear until the afternoon. The following table comparing the telegraph traffic between December 20 and December 24 (Sunday excluded), Indicates the heavy increases recorded:—

The Christmas greeting telegrams, which were transmitted at the nominal fee of 6d, were widely patronised. At Hamilton 2173 were lodged as compared with 1933 last year. These figures are included in the foregoing table.

Telephone Concessions. Much greater use was made of thß telephone facilities. No doubt advantage was taken of the concessions that the department had made and it was a significant fact that, despite the reductions in the scale of charges, the total financial returns were in excess of those of the corresponding period last year. A comparative table records the increases as follows: —

The total figures represent some indication of the enormous increase in the popularity of the telephone service. Where two years ago only 18,026 calls were handled during the Christmas week at Hamilton in the corresponding period this year the toll operators dealt with 23,497, an increase of 5471. The substantial increase in the number of through calls which are calls not bound to or from Hamilton but built up through the Hamilton exchange, may perhaps be regarded as a criterion of a general increase throughout the Dominion. As it is by this means that the majority of the long distance calls from the country .post offices are handled, the increase in this class also shows that the toll services are being more widely patronised by residents of the out-dis-Iricts.

Telegrams forwarded Telegrams received . Telegrams received transmitted to otlier 1034 3370 4521 1933 3081 3847 and offices 2752 2024 Totals 10,613 8952

1932 Out. In. Throne'll Total Dec. 19-21 . 5153 5899 5491 16,843 2 5 th. (Sun.) 212 435 500 1,183 5595 6334 . 5997 18,026 1033 Dec. 18-23 . 590S 0113 0107 18,158 ami (Sun.) 210 449 " 478 1176 0157 0502 65S5 19,334 103i Dec. 17 .oo 0213 7713 S070 22,002 2 3 I'd (Sun'.) 351 601 540 1405 6507 8314 8610 23,407