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 Chapter 5

Multiple Choice (21) WARNING: CORRECT ANSWERS ARE IN THE SAME POSITION AND TAGGED WITH **.
YOU SHOULD RANDOMIZE THE LOCATION OF THE CORRECT ANSWERS IN YOUR EXAM.

1. When reading data from a file, the open function returns a(n) __________.
a. file object **
b. file name
c. file handle
d. file tuple

2. What function do you use to terminate a connection to a file?

a. close **
b. terminate
c. stop
d. disconnect

3. After all the lines of a file have been read, the readline method returns __________.
a. the empty string **
b. an empty tuple
c. the value None
d. a Throwback error

4. Python uses a(n) __________ as a temporary holding place for data to be written to disk.
a. buffer **
b. temp space
c. special memory location
d. list

5. When are the contents of the buffer written to disk?

a. When the buffer is full.
b. When the file is closed.
c. Both a & b. **
d. None of the above.

6. Which standard library module do you need to import in order to use the remove and rename
functions for files?
a. os **
b. file
c. path

© 2016 Pearson Education, Inc., Hoboken, NJ. All rights reserved.

 d. pickle

7. A(n) __________ is an unordered collection of items with no duplicates.

a. set **
b. file
c. dictionary
d. tuple

8. Elements of a set are delimited with __________.

a. { } **
b. [ ]
c. ( )
d. < >

9. The statement set1.union(set2) is:

a. the set containing the elements that are in either set1 and set2 without duplicates **
b. the set containing the elements that are in both set1 and set2
c. the set containing the elements that are in set1 with the elements of set2 removed
d. the set containing the elements that are in set2 with the elements of in set1 removed

10. The statement set1.intersection(set2) is:

a. the set containing the elements that are in both set1 and set2 **
b. the set containing the elements that are in either set1 and set2 without duplicates
c. the set containing the elements that are in set1 with the elements of set2 removed
d. the set containing the elements that are in set2 with the elements of in set1 removed

11. The statement set1.difference(set2) is:

a. the set containing the elements that are in set1 with the elements of set2 removed **
b. the set containing the elements that are in set2 with the elements of in set1 removed
c. the set containing the elements that are in both set1 and set2
d. the set containing the elements that are in either set1 and set2 without duplicates

12. An attempt to open a nonexistent file for input:

a. generates a runtime error **
b. generates a syntax error
c. creates an empty input file
d. none of the above

13. If a file that already exists is opened for writing:

a. the contents of the file will be erased **
b. the new data to be written will be appended to the end of the rile
c. a Throwback error will occur

© 2016 Pearson Education, Inc., Hoboken, NJ. All rights reserved.

 d. the user will be prompted for the action they wish to take

14. The default mode for opening a file is

a. reading **
b. writing
c. appending
d. deleting

15. To avoid a potential runtime error when opening files for reading or writing:
a. use the os.path.isfile function **
b. use the os.path.file.exists function
c. prompt the user for the action to take if the file does not exist
d. use the Boolean value try to check if the file exists

16. What is the output of the following Python statement?

print (set(“bookkeeper”))
a. {‘b’, ‘o’, ‘k’, ‘e’, ‘p’, ‘r’} **
b. {‘b’, ‘o’, ‘o’, ‘k’, ‘k’, ‘e’, ‘e’, ‘p’, ‘e’, ‘r’}
c. {‘o’, ‘k’, ‘e’}
d. {‘b’, ‘p’, ‘r’}

17. Each line of a CSV file is referred to as a(n) __________.

a. record **
b. tuple
c. field
d. comma field

18. Each piece of data in a CSV file record is referred to as a(n) __________.
a. field **
b. record
c. tuple
d. line

19. In a dictionary, a pair such such as “dog” : “rover” is called a(n) __________.
a. item **
b. pair
c. key
d. couple

20. Which file format stores data as a sequence of types that can only be access by special readers?
a. binary **
b. text

© 2016 Pearson Education, Inc., Hoboken, NJ. All rights reserved.

 c. CSV-formatted
d. all of the above

21. In order for Python to use functions to work with binary files, you must first import which
standard library module?
a. pickle **
b. os
c. binaries
d. osfile

True/False (23)

1. After all the lines of a file have been read, the readline method returns the value None.

Answer: false

2. You must close a file in order to guarantee that all data has been physically written to the disk.

Answer: true

3. The remove and rename functions cannot be used with open files.

Answer: true

4. Sets cannot contain lists.

Answer: true

5. Sets can contain other sets.

Answer: false

6. Elements of a set have no order.

Answer: true

7. Elements of a set may be duplicated.

Answer: false

8. Two sets are equal if they contain the same elements.

Answer: true

9. Elements if a set cannot be ordered.

Answer: true

© 2016 Pearson Education, Inc., Hoboken, NJ. All rights reserved.

10. Sets cannot be created with comprehension.

Answer: false

11. infile is a descriptive name bot not mandatory for file input usage.

Answer: true

12. An attempt to open a nonexistent file for input generates a syntax error.

Answer: false

13. If a file that already exists is opened for writing, the contents of the file will be erased.

Answer: true

14. The default mode for opening a file is writing.

Answer: false

15. Only strings can be written to text file.

Answer: true

16. The value of set() is the empty set.

Answer: true

17. The data in the fields of each record in a CSV file normally should be related.

Answer: true

18. In a dictionary, keys must be immutable objects.

Answer: true

19. It is common to create dictionaries from text files.

Answer: true

20. Dictionaries cannot have other dictionaries as values.

Answer: false

21. A dictionary is an ordered structure that can be sorted.

Answer: false

22. Dictionaries cannot be created with comprehension.

© 2016 Pearson Education, Inc., Hoboken, NJ. All rights reserved.

 Answer: false

23. Dictionary comprehension can be used to extract a subset of a dictionary.

Answer: true

Short Answer (11)

1. Complete the following function to open the file for reading and read the contents into a single
string named contents.

def readFile(file):

Answer:
infile = open(file, ‘r’)
contents = infile.read()

2. Write a Python statement to open a file called names for writing and assign it to a variable called
outfile.

Answer: outfile = open(names, ‘w’)

3. Write a Python statement to open a file called grades with the intent to add values to the end of
the file and assign it to a variable called outfile.

Answer: outfile = open(grades, ‘a’)

4. Write a single Python statement to convert the list [“spring”, “summer”, “fall”, “winter”] to a set
called seasons.

Answer: seasons = set([“spring”, “summer”, “fall”, “winter”])

5. Write a single Python statement to convert the tuple (“spring”, “summer”, “fall”, “winter”) to a
set called seasons.

Answer: seasons = set((“spring”, “summer”, “fall”, “winter”))

6. Why can’t elements of a set be indexed?

Answer: Elements of a set cannot be indexed have no order.

7. Explain the difference between a simple text file and a CSV-formatted file.

Answer: A simple text file has a single piece of data per line. A CSV-formatter file has several items
of data on each line with items separated by commas.

8. Write a Python statement to create an empty dictionary called dogs.

© 2016 Pearson Education, Inc., Hoboken, NJ. All rights reserved.

Answer: dogs = { }

9. Write a Python statement to create a copy of the dictionary called dogs into a new dictionary
called canines.

Answer: canines = dict(dogs)

10. Create a dictionary called dogs for the following data.

Eddie Jack Russell

Lassie Collie
Ping Beagle

Answer: dogs = {“Eddie” : “Jack Russell”, “Lassie” : “Collie”, “Ping” : “Beagle”}

11. Why can’t lists and sets serve as keys for dictionaries?

Answer: Because dictionary keys must be immutable objects. Lists and sets are mutable.

© 2016 Pearson Education, Inc., Hoboken, NJ. All rights reserved.

Other documents randomly have
different content
 CHAPTER XXXVI.
DECOY LETTERS.
Those who may have perused the preceding pages of this work, will
require no further comment on the nature and utility of decoy
letters. But as some persons are met with who, without much
reflection, condemn their use under all circumstances, it may be well
to offer a few remarks in defence of this practice.
It is very clear that decoy letters can never injure honest men. These
missives trouble no one who does not unlawfully meddle with them,
and it can hardly be claimed that they offer any greater temptations
to the dishonestly inclined than any other class of money-letters. It
is of course impossible for any one to distinguish between a decoy
letter and a genuine one, and he who faithfully discharges his duties
in reference to other letters, will never find out by his own personal
experience, that there are such things as decoys.
It should not be forgotten that these devices are employed for the
public good, and that the security of a vast amount of property, as
well as the removal of unjust suspicion, often depends upon the
detection of some delinquent post-office employé. In such a case, it
would surely be foolishly fastidious to object to the adoption of a
method of effecting the desired end, which accurately distinguishes
between the innocent and the guilty, and which does injustice to no
one.
In the defence of criminals tried in the United States Courts, for mail
robbery, whose detection has been effected by means of decoy
letters, especially in cases where there seems to be no other ground
of defence, it is frequently insisted on very eloquently, that as the
law of Congress on this subject provides against the embezzlement
of letters "intended to be conveyed by post," no offence is
committed by the purloining of decoys, inasmuch as this class of
epistles are not bonâ fide letters, and are not intended to be
conveyed in the mail, within the true intent and meaning of the
statute.
This position has been overthrown, however, as often as it has been
assumed, and it is believed that the decisions on this point, of all the
United States Judges before whom the question has been raised,
have been uniform throughout the country.
In a recent important trial in the city of New York, before his Honor
Judge Betts, the decoy system received a severe hetchelling from
the learned counsel for the prisoner, and after the evidence had
been laid before the jury, the Court was asked to dismiss the case
and the culprit, on the ground that the offence provided against in
the twenty-first section of the Act of 1825, had not been committed.
But his Honor took a very different view of the matter, as will appear
by the following extract from his decision:—
Judge Betts remarked to the jury that the facts upon
which the indictment is found being uncontroverted, the
question of the prisoner's guilt depends solely upon points
of law.
When facts are ascertained, it is the province of the Court
to determine whether they come within the provisions of
the law sought to be applied to them; and, although in
criminal cases the jury gives a general answer, covering
both the law and fact, to the inquiry whether the accused
is guilty or not guilty, it is not to be supposed they will, in
a case resting wholly upon a question of law, render a
verdict in opposition to the instructions of the Court. The
defence of the accused assumes that the twenty-first
section above recited, in order to a conviction under it,
demands affirmative proof from the prosecution that the
letters were intended to be conveyed by post, according
to their address: And it is urged that such proof not being
made, but on the contrary, the evidence being that the
writer of the letters did not intend they should be so
delivered, but meant to take them out of the mail himself,
to prevent their delivery, if they were not embezzled in the
office in this city, the acts done by the accused are no
offence under the statute.
I think that construction of the statute cannot be
maintained in respect to letters actually in the mail, and
especially in this case, where the letters had been
conveyed by post and came into this office by the mail
from other offices.
It is a presumption of law, and not a matter of proof, that
letters so circumstanced, were intended to be conveyed
by post. The question of intention is no longer referable to
the private purpose of the writer, whatever might be the
fact when letters are given to persons employed in the
Post-Office Department, out of the office, for the purpose
of being put into it or conveyed by mail.
When, however, a letter already in the mail is purloined,
(1 McLean R. 504; 2 Id. 434,) or is embezzled by a carrier
on the route, (1 Curtis R. 367,) it is, in judgment of law,
intended to be conveyed by post, within the meaning of
the statute, and the private purpose and intention of the
person who put it in the mail, is in no way material, and
need not be proved.
Nor indeed, if the accused can prove, or it is made to
appear upon the evidence of the prosecution, that the
letter was placed in the mail or came into a post-office,
prepared and intended as a decoy, and was not intrusted
to the mail in the way of bonâ fide correspondence, is the
criminality of taking it thereby absolved: even if the
evidence advances another stage, and shows that the
decoy was aimed at and intended for the particular person
caught by it, (The United States v. Laurence, 2 McLean R.
441; The United States v. Foye, 1 Curtis R. 307-8.)
These decisions enforce the manifest policy of the statute.
The post-office establishment, and the enactments
maintaining the security of its action and the fidelity of
persons employed in it, compose a great national
measure, and the laws governing and protecting it are to
be construed so as to subserve the public good, and not
with a view to what might be a reasonable rule in
transactions between individuals. But I apprehend that
even in individual transactions, the agents of a bank, a
merchant's clerk, or a domestic servant could not protect
themselves against a criminal or civil charge of
appropriating the effects of their employers, by proof that
the property had been placed within their reach by its
owner, in distrust of their honesty, and for the purpose of
testing it.
The method adopted by the Department to detect
offenders under this law, does not appear to me
objectionable in the point of view pressed by the counsel
for the accused. No further temptation or facility to the
commission of the offence is thereby placed before such
offenders than must necessarily be presented in the daily
business of their trusts. These packages were in every
respect the same in appearance, and with only the same
indications of enclosing money, as ordinary letters by
which remittances are made. And it seems to me when it
comes to be understood by persons handling such
packages in the mail or destined for it, that a watchful eye
may be following each package from office to office, and
noticing everything done to it, that the apprehension of
such supervision may act almost with the force of a
religious consciousness of accountability, in awing wicked
purposes and preventing criminal actions.
I am persuaded that letters would rarely be intercepted in
their transmission by post, if every person concerned in
mailing or carrying them, could be impressed with the
idea that each package enclosing valuables, may be but a
bait seeking to detect whoever may be dishonest enough
to molest it, and to become a swift witness for his
conviction and punishment.
The jury convicted the prisoner, and on the 29th day of
December, 1854, he was sentenced to ten years'
imprisonment.
 SUPPLEMENTARY CHAPTER.
PRACTICAL INFORMATION.
The design of the author, in the preparation of the present volume,
would be but imperfectly answered, were he to fail to communicate
that practical information which it is very desirable that the public at
large should possess, both for their own sake and that of those
connected with the mail service. For, an accurate knowledge of the
requirements of the law upon leading points, would obviate much of
the disappointment and unpleasant feeling to which mistaken views
on the subject give rise. There are popular errors on many matters
connected with post-office regulations which are every day causing
trouble and vexation, and which can only be corrected by presenting
the facts as they are.
This information is not accessible to the public in general; at least, it
is out of the way, and is not kept before the people. The Department
publishes, at irregular intervals, an edition of its laws and regulations
for the use of post masters, each of whom is supplied with a copy;
and this, with the exception of the ordinary newspaper record of the
laws as they are passed, is the only source of information upon this
subject open to people in general. The detail of regulations
established by the Department, seldom finds its way into the papers,
and correspondents are left to acquire their knowledge respecting it
by (sometimes sad) experience.
It is the intention of the author to supply these deficiencies in part at
least, avoiding, however, all laws and regulations likely to be
changed by legislation, or the constructions put upon them by the
chief officers appointed from time to time to administer those laws.
Post masters being already provided with the official instructions
pertaining to their duties, a repetition here is deemed unnecessary
farther than a knowledge of the laws and regulations may be
essential to the public.
For the items of information presented below, the author relies in
part on the suggestions of his own experience, but they are mainly
compiled from the established regulations of the Post-Office
Department, and such of the decisions of its chief officers as are
likely to remain permanently in force:—
MISSING LETTERS, ETC.
That the loss or delay of letters, valuable or otherwise, is often
caused by the dishonesty or carelessness of those to whose custody
they are committed, must be acknowledged. Still, in a large
proportion of such cases, the cause is to be found in some one or a
combination of those curious omissions and mistakes to which all
correspondents—but more especially men deeply involved in
business pursuits—are so liable. The records of the Dead Letter
Office, if consulted, would present a list of delinquents in this
particular, embracing the names of hundreds of individuals and
firms, ranking as the most exact and systematic persons in the
community.
A similar examination of the official reports of the Special Agents and
post masters, would further show to what an extent such losses are
attributable to a want of fidelity and proper care on the part of
persons employed to convey letters to and from the post-office.
Suggestions as to the remedies are hardly called for.
So far as relates to misdirections, as they are most apt to occur with
persons and mercantile houses of extensive correspondence, an
excellent precaution may be found, in requiring the post-office
messenger, after the letters have been prepared for the mail, to
enter in a book kept for that purpose, the full outside address of
each letter, with the date of mailing. In case any one of them is
incorrectly addressed, and fails to reach its intended destination, a
reference to the book of superscriptions will show where the missing
document was sent, and lead to its immediate recovery. If correctly
addressed, that fact would appear, and materially aid in an official
investigation. This, together with the adoption of a greater degree of
care than is at present exercised, in the selection of persons to act
as private letter carriers, would greatly reduce the number of losses,
mishaps, and complaints in connection with the mails. Where it is
possible, but one person should be sent to the post-office.
The name of the writer or firm, written or printed on the letter, is an
advantage in case of miscarriage.
When a valuable letter is missing from any cause, the fact should be
at once reported to the post master, in writing, with full particulars,
and a search made by the complainants, of the pockets of any spare
over-coats about the premises.
Where letters are delivered by a public letter carrier, or penny post, a
locked box or some other safe place of deposit for the letters thus
left, should be provided. A neglect of this precaution, is the cause of
many annoyances and losses.
The address of letters intended for delivery in cities, should include,
if possible, the occupation, street and number of the party
addressed.
When a letter is, by mistake or owing to a duplicate name, delivered
to the wrong person, it should be immediately returned to the post-
office with a verbal explanation, and not be dropped into the letter
box. If inadvertently opened by the party taking it from the office,
the fact should be endorsed on the back of the letter, with the name
of the opener.
Experience has shown that locked letter boxes or drawers opening
on the outside, especially in cities and large towns, are unsafe, as
depositories of letters, especially those containing articles of value.
No letters should be given to Route Agents upon the cars or
steamboats, except such as cannot be written before the closing of
the mail at the post-office. Under no circumstances can Route
Agents receive letters that are not pre-paid by stamps.
When there are good grounds for believing that letters are opened
and read from motives of curiosity, complaint should be made in
writing to the Chief Clerk of the Post-Office Department,
Washington. A secret plan for the certain detection of prying
delinquents has recently been devised.
Two or more letters directed to different persons, cannot be sent by
mail in one envelope or packet, without subjecting the sender to a
fine of ten dollars. This does not apply to any letter or packet
directed to a foreign country.
Costly and delicate articles of jewelry or other valuables, should not
be placed in a letter, as they are liable to serious injury in the
process of stamping.
It is a violation of law to enclose a letter or other thing (except bills
and receipts for subscription,) or to make any memorandum in
writing, or to print any word or communication, after its publication,
upon any newspaper, pamphlet, magazine, or other printed matter.
The person addressed must pay letter postage, or the sender be
fined five dollars.
If a letter is deposited in a post-office, and the enclosure accidentally
omitted, or it becomes necessary to alter or add to the contents, it is
much better to write another letter, than to trouble those in the
office to look for the original one. In large places, especially, a
successful search for it, even immediately after its deposit, would
consume much valuable time, and such a request is altogether
unreasonable, when the remedy suggested is so simple and cheap.
On calling or sending for a letter known to have been advertised, the
fact should always be stated, otherwise only the current letters are
examined.
Although it is strictly the duty of post masters and other agents of
the Department, to correct or report such errors in the mail service
as may come to their knowledge, it is, nevertheless, desirable that
any private citizen should inform the Department of continued
neglect or carelessness in the execution of mail contracts or
mismanagement in a post-office.
Legal provision has been made by Congress, by which letters may be
sent out of the mail in cases of emergency. By the use of the
Government envelope, with the stamp printed thereon, and
constituting a part thereof, letters may be so sent, provided the
envelope is duly sealed, directed, and addressed, and the date or
receipt or transmission of such letter written or stamped thereon.
The use of such envelope more than once, subjects the offender to a
fine of fifty dollars.
A letter or ordinary envelope with a postage stamp put on by the
writer, cannot go out of the mail (except by private hand,) for the
reason that the law confines the matter entirely to the envelopes
furnished by the Department. Were the privilege extended to the
other kind of stamps, there being no way to cancel them, by their
re-use, extensive frauds upon the revenue would be the result.
A singular notion seems long to have prevailed that it is no violation
of law to send an unsealed letter outside of the mail. This makes no
difference whatever. Even if the paper written upon is not folded, it
is a letter.
Where bundles of newspapers are sent in the mail to "clubs,"
without the names of the subscribers upon the papers, the post
master is under no official obligation to address them. Still the
Department enjoins a spirit of courtesy and accommodation towards
publishers and the public, in all such matters.
A person receiving a letter from the post-office by mistake, or finding
one in the street or elsewhere, can under no pretence designedly
break the seal without subjecting himself to a severe penalty.
A printed business card or the name of the sender, placed upon the
outside of a circular, subjects it to double postage; and for any
writing, except the address, letter postage is charged.
The following are among the established rules and regulations of the
Department founded upon existing statutes of Congress:—
Only the dead letters containing enclosures of value, are
required by law to be preserved and returned to their
owners; but if the writer of a letter not containing an
enclosure of value desires to have his letter preserved, it
will be done if he pre-pay the letter and mark the words
"to be preserved," in large characters, on the sealed side.
Upon the return of his letter he will be required to pay the
postage from Washington.
The masters of steamboats under contract with the
Department, will deliver into the post-offices (or to the
route or local agent of the Department, if there be any,) at
the places at which they arrive, all letters received by
them, or by any person employed on their boats, at any
point along the route.
Masters or managers of all other steamboats, are required
by law, under a penalty of thirty dollars, to deliver all
letters brought by them, or within their care or power,
addressed to, or destined for, the places at which they
arrive, to the post masters at such places: except letters
relating to some part of the cargo and left unsealed. All
letters not addressed to persons to whom the cargo, or
any part of it, is consigned, are therefore to be delivered
into the post-office, to be charged-with postage.
Every master of a vessel from a foreign port is bound,
immediately on his arrival at a port, and before he can
report, make entry, or break bulk, under a penalty not to
exceed $100, to deliver into the post-office all letters
brought in his vessel, directed to any person in the United
States, or the Territories thereof, which are under his care
or within his power, except such letters as relate to the
cargo or some part thereof.
Stage coaches, railroad cars, steamboats, packetboats,
and all other vehicles or vessels performing regular trips at
stated periods, on a post route between two or more
cities, towns, or places, from one to the other, on which
the United States mail is regularly conveyed under the
authority of the Post-Office Department, are prohibited
from transporting or conveying, otherwise than in the
mail, any letter, packet, or packets of letters, (except
those sealed and addressed and pre-paid by stamped
envelopes, of suitable denominations,) or other mailable
matter whatsoever, except such as may have relation to
some part of the cargo of such steamboat, packetboat, or
other vessel, or to some article at the same time conveyed
by such stage, railroad car, or some vehicle, and excepting
also, newspapers, pamphlets, magazines, and periodicals.
A newspaper, pamphlet, circular, or other printed sheet, if
in a wrapper, should be so folded and wrapped that its
character can be readily determined; and so that any
prohibited writing, marks, or signs upon it may easily be
detected. If closely enveloped and sealed it is chargeable
with letter postage.
No post master or other privileged person can authorize
his assistant, clerk, or any other person to write his name
for the purpose of franking any letter, public or private.
The personal privilege of franking travels with the person
possessing it, and can be exercised in but one place at the
same time.
No post master or privileged person can leave his frank
behind him upon envelopes to cover his correspondence in
his absence.
Money and other valuable things, sent in the mail, are at
the risk of the owner. But, if they be lost, the Department
will make every effort in its power to discover the cause,
and, if there has been a theft, to punish the offender.
Letters can be registered on the payment of the registry
fee of five cents for each letter.
Post masters, assistants, and clerks, regularly employed
and engaged in post-offices, and also post riders and
drivers of mail stages, are by law exempt from military
duty and serving on juries, and from any fine or penalty
for neglect thereof.—Act of 1825, sec. 35; Act of 1836,
sec. 34.
A post master will suffer no person whatever, except his
duly sworn assistants, or clerks and letter carriers, who
may also have been sworn, to have access to the letters,
newspapers, and packets in his office, or whatever
constitutes a part of the mail, or to the mail locks or keys.
If no special order upon the subject has been made in
regard to his office, a post master is allowed seven
minutes only to change the mail.
If the mail be carried in a stage, coach, or sulky, it will be
the duty of the driver to deliver it as near the door of the
post-office as he can come with his vehicle, but not to
leave his horses, and he should not be permitted to throw
the mail on the ground.
Post masters will not suffer newspapers to be read in their
offices by persons to whom they are not addressed; nor to
be lent out in any case, without permission of the owners.
If newspapers are not taken out of the office by the
person to whom they are addressed, the post master will
give immediate notice to the publishers, and of the cause
thereof if known.
Packets of every description, weighing more than four
pounds, are to be excluded, except public documents,
printed by order of either House of Congress, or such
publications or books as have been or may be published,
procured, or purchased, by order of either House of
Congress, or joint resolution of the two Houses, and
legally franked.
Newspapers and periodicals to foreign countries
(particularly to the continent of Europe) must be sent in
narrow bands, open at the sides or end; otherwise they
are chargeable there with letter postage.
Drop and box letters, circulars, free packets containing
printed documents, speeches, or other printed matter, are
not to be advertised.
If newspapers are carried out of the mail for sale or
distribution, post masters are not bound to receive and
deliver them. Pamphlets and magazines for immediate
distribution to subscribers cannot be so carried without a
violation of the law of Congress.
The great mails are to be closed at all distributing offices
not more than one hour before the time fixed for their
departure; and all other mails at those offices, and all
mails at all other offices, not more than half an hour
before that time, unless the departure is between 9
o'clock, P. M., and 5, A. M., in which case the mail is to be
closed at 9, P. M.
Postage stamps and stamped envelopes, may be used in
pre-payment of postage on letters to foreign countries, in
all cases where such pre-payment can be made in money.
A letter bearing a stamp, cut or separated from a stamped
envelope, cannot be sent through the mail as a pre-paid
letter. Stamps so cut or separated from stamped
envelopes lose their legal value.
It is expected that a disposition to accommodate will
prompt a post master to search for and deliver a letter, on
the application of a person who cannot call during the
usual office hours.
No person can hold the office of post master, who is not
an actual resident of the city or town wherein the post-
office is situated, or within the delivery of the office.—Sec.
36 of Act of 1836.
Letter postage is to be charged on all hand-bills, circulars,
or other printed matter which shall contain any manuscript
writing whatever.
When the mail stops over night where there is a post-
office, it must be kept in the office.
Any person wishing a letter mailed direct, and not to be
remailed at a distributing office, can have his directions
followed by writing the words "mail direct" upon the letter.
The use of canvas bags of any kind, for any other
purposes than the conveyance of mail matter, subjects
every person so offending, to all the penalties provided in
the 4th section of the Act of 1852. Contractors, mail
carriers, and others in the service of the Department, are
by no means free from censure in this respect, and
increased vigilance in the detection of such practices, and
the prompt and indiscriminate punishment of the
offenders, have recently been enjoined by the Post Master
General.
Some of the laws are often violated by persons not connected with
the post-office, and it is proper, therefore, that all classes should be
made acquainted with the penalties which attach to such offences.
For this reason the following extracts from the laws are here
inserted:—
Act of 1825.
Sec. 9. And be it further enacted, That if any person shall,
knowingly and wilfully, obstruct or retard the passage of
the mail, or of any driver or carrier, or of any horse or
carriage, carrying the same, he shall, upon conviction for
every such offence, pay a fine not exceeding one hundred
dollars; and if any ferryman shall, by wilful negligence, or
refusal to transport the mail across any ferry, delay the
same, he shall forfeit and pay, for every ten minutes that
the same shall be so delayed, a sum not exceeding ten
dollars.
Sec. 21. And be it further enacted, That if any person
employed in any of the departments of the post-office
establishment, shall unlawfully detain, delay, or open any
letter, packet, bag, or mail of letters, with which he shall
be intrusted, or which shall have come to his possession,
and which are intended to be conveyed by post; or, if any
such person shall secrete, embezzle, or destroy any letter
or packet intrusted to such person as aforesaid, and which
shall not contain any security for, or assurance relating to
money, as hereinafter described, every such offender,
being thereof duly convicted, shall, for every such offence,
be fined, not exceeding three hundred dollars, or
imprisoned, not exceeding six months, or both, according
to the circumstances and aggravation of the offence. And
if any person, employed as aforesaid, shall secrete,
embezzle, or destroy any letter, packet, bag, or mail of
letters, with which he or she shall be intrusted, or which
shall have come to his or her possession, and are intended
to be conveyed by post, containing any bank-note or bank
post bill, bill of exchange, warrant of the Treasury of the
United States, note of assignment of stock in the funds,
letters of attorney for receiving annuities or dividends, or
for selling stock in the funds, or for receiving the interest
thereof, or any letter of credit, or note for, or relating to,
payment of moneys, or any bond, or warrant, draft, bill, or
promissory note, covenant, contract, or agreement
whatsoever, for, or relating to, the payment of money, or
the delivery of any article of value, or the performance of
any act, matter, or thing, or any receipt, release,
acquittance, or discharge of, or from, any debt, covenant,
or demand, or any part thereof, or any copy of any record
of any judgment or decree in any court of law, or
chancery, or any execution which may have issued
thereon, or any copy of any other record, or any other
article of value, or any writing representing the same; or if
any such person employed as aforesaid, shall steal, or
take, any of the same out of any letter, packet, bag, or
mail of letters, that shall come to his or her possession,
such person shall, on conviction for any such offence, be
imprisoned not less than ten years, nor exceeding twenty-
one years; and if any person who shall have taken charge
of the mails of the United States, shall quit or desert the
same before such person delivers it into the post-office
kept at the termination of the route, or some known mail
carrier, or agent of the General Post-Office, authorized to
receive the same, every such person, so offending, shall
forfeit and pay a sum not exceeding five hundred dollars
for every such offence; and if any person concerned in
carrying the mail of the United States, shall collect,
receive, or carry any letter, or packet, or shall cause or
procure the same to be done, contrary to this act, every
such offender shall forfeit and pay, for every such offence,
a sum not exceeding fifty dollars.
Sec. 22. And be it further enacted, That if any person shall
rob any carrier of the mail of the United States, or other
person intrusted therewith, of such mail, or of part
thereof, such offender or offenders shall, on conviction, be
imprisoned not less than five years, nor exceeding ten
years; and, if convicted a second time of a like offence, he
or they shall suffer death; or, if, in effecting such robbery
of the mail, the first time, the offender shall wound the
person having custody thereof, or put his life in jeopardy,
by the use of dangerous weapons, such offender or
offenders shall suffer death. And if any person shall
attempt to rob the mail of the United States, by assaulting
the person having custody thereof, shooting at him or his
horse or mule, or threatening him with dangerous
weapons, and the robbery is not effected, every such
offender, on conviction thereof, shall be punished by
imprisonment, not less than two years nor exceeding ten
years. And, if any person shall steal the mail, or shall steal
or take from, or out of, any mail, or from, or out of any
post-office, any letter or packet; or, if any person shall
take the mail, or any letter or packet therefrom, or from
any post-office, whether with or without the consent of
the person having custody thereof, and shall open,
embezzle, or destroy any such mail, letter, or packet, the
same containing any article of value, or evidence of any
debt, due, demand, right, or claim, or any release, receipt,
acquittance, or discharge, or any other article, paper, or
thing, mentioned and described in the twenty-first section
of this act; or, if any person shall, by fraud or deception,
obtain from any person having custody thereof, any mail,
letter, or packet, containing any article of value, or
evidence thereof, or either of the writings referred to, or
next above-mentioned, such offender or offenders, on
conviction thereof, shall be imprisoned, not less than two,
nor exceeding ten years. And, if any person shall take any
letter or packet, not containing any article of value, nor
evidence thereof, out of a post-office, or shall open any
letter, or packet, which shall have been in a post-office, or
in custody of a mail carrier, before it shall have been
delivered to the person to whom it is directed, with a
design to obstruct the correspondence, to pry into
another's business or secrets; or shall secrete, embezzle,
or destroy any such mail, letter, or packet, such offender,
upon conviction, shall pay, for every such offence, a sum
not exceeding five hundred dollars, and be imprisoned not
exceeding twelve months.
Sec. 23. And be it further enacted, That if any person shall
rip, cut, tear, burn, or otherwise injure, any valise,
portmanteau, or other bag, used, or designed to be used,
by any person acting under the authority of the Post
Master General, or any person in whom his powers are
vested, in a conveyance of any mail, letter, packet, or
newspaper, or pamphlet, or shall draw or break, any
staple, or loosen any part of any lock, chain, or strap,
attached to, or belonging to any such valise, portmanteau,
or bag, with an intent to rob, or steal any mail, letter,
packet, newspaper, or pamphlet, or to render either of the
same insecure, every such offender, upon conviction,
shall, for every such offence, pay a sum not less than one
hundred dollars, nor exceeding five hundred dollars, or be
imprisoned not less than one year, nor exceeding three
years, at the discretion of the court before whom such
conviction is had.
Sec. 24. And be it further enacted, That every person,
who, from and after the passage of this act, shall procure,
and advise, or assist, in the doing or perpetration of any
of the acts or crimes by this act forbidden, shall be subject
to the same penalties and punishments as the persons are
subject to, who shall actually do or perpetrate any of the
said acts or crimes, according to the provisions of this act.
Sec. 45. And be it further enacted, That if any person shall
buy, receive, or conceal, or aid in buying, receiving, or
concealing, any article mentioned in the twenty-first
section of this act, knowing the same to have been stolen
or embezzled from the mail of the United States, or out of
any post-office, or from any person having the custody of
the said mail, or the letters sent or to be sent therein; or if
any person shall be accessory after the fact to any
robbery of the carrier of the mail of the United States, or
other person intrusted therewith, of such mail, or of part
thereof, every person, so offending, shall, on conviction
thereof, pay a fine not exceeding two thousand dollars,
and be imprisoned and confined to hard labor for any time
not exceeding ten years. And such person or persons, so
offending, may be tried and convicted without the
principal offender being first tried, provided such principal
offender has fled from justice, or cannot be found to be
put on his trial.
Act of 1836.
Sec. 38. And be it further enacted, That if any person shall
be accessory after the fact, to the offence of stealing or
taking the mail of the United States, or of stealing or
taking any letter or packet, or enclosure in any letter or
packet sent or to be sent in the mail of the United States,
from any post-office in the United States, or from the mail
of the United States, by any person or persons whatever,
every person so offending as accessory, shall, on
conviction thereof, pay a fine not exceeding one thousand
dollars, and be imprisoned for a term not exceeding five
years; and such accessory after the fact may be tried,
convicted, and punished in the district in which his offence
was committed, though the principal offence may have
been committed in another district, and before the trial of
the principal offender: Provided, such principal offender
has fled from justice, or cannot be arrested to be put
upon his trial.
Sec. 28, Act of 1825.
* * * And if any person shall counterfeit the hand-writing
or frank of any person, or cause the same to be done, in
order to avoid the payment of postage, each person, so
offending, shall pay, for every such offence, five hundred
dollars.
Sec. 5, Act of 1845.
And be it further enacted, That if any person or persons
shall forge or counterfeit, or shall utter or use knowingly,
any counterfeit stamp of the Post-Office Department of
the United States issued by authority of this act or by any
other act of Congress, within the United States, or the
post-office stamp of any foreign Government, he shall be
adjudged guilty of felony, and, on conviction thereof in
any court having jurisdiction of the same, shall undergo a
confinement at hard labor for any length of time not less
than two years, nor more than ten, at the discretion of the
court.
Sec. 11, Act of 1847.
* * * And any person who shall falsely and fraudulently
make, utter, or forge any postage stamp with the intent to
defraud the Post-Office Department, shall be deemed
guilty of felony, and on conviction shall be subject to the
same punishment as is provided in the twenty-first section
of the act approved the third day of March, eighteen
hundred and twenty-five, entitled "An act to reduce into
one the several acts establishing and regulating the Post-
Office Department."
Act of 1851.
Sec. 3. * * * And any person who shall forge or counterfeit
any postage stamp provided or furnished under the
provisions of this or any former act, whether the same are
impressed or printed on or attached to envelopes or not,
or any die, plate, or engraving thereof, or shall make or
print, or knowingly use or sell, or have in his possession
with intent to use or sell, any such false, forged, or
counterfeited die, plate, engraving, or postage stamp, or
who shall make or print, or authorize or procure to be
made or printed, any postage stamps of the kind provided
and furnished by the Post Master General as aforesaid,
without the especial authority and direction of the Post-
Office Department, or who, after such postage stamps
have been printed, shall, with intent to defraud the
revenues of the Post-Office Department, deliver any
postage stamps to any person or persons other than such
as shall be authorized to receive the same, by an
instrument of writing duly executed under the hand of the
Post Master General, and the seal of the Post-Office
Department, shall, on conviction thereof, be deemed guilty
of felony, and be punished by a fine not exceeding five
hundred dollars, or by imprisonment not exceeding five
years, or by both such fine and imprisonment.
Sec. 4. * * * And if any person shall use or attempt to use
in pre-payment of postage, any postage stamp which shall
have been before used for like purposes, such person shall
be subject to a penalty of fifty dollars for every such
offence, to be recovered in the name of the United States,
in any court of competent jurisdiction.
Sec. 30, Act of 1825.
* * * If any person employed in any department of the
post-office, shall improperly detain, delay, embezzle, or
destroy, any newspaper, or shall permit any other person
to do the like, or shall open, or permit any other to open,
any mail, or packet, of newspapers, not directed to the
office where he is employed, such offender shall, on
conviction thereof, forfeit a sum not exceeding fifty
dollars, for every such offence. And if any person shall
open any mail or packet of newspapers, or shall embezzle
or destroy the same, not being directed to such person, or
not being authorized to receive or open the same, such
offender shall, on conviction thereof, pay a sum not
exceeding twenty dollars for every such offence. And if
any person shall take, or steal, any packet, bag, or mail of
newspapers, from, or out of any post-office, or from any
person having custody thereof, such person shall, on
conviction, be imprisoned, not exceeding three months,
for every such offence, to be kept at hard labor during the
period of such imprisonment. If any person shall enclose
or conceal a letter, or other thing, or any memorandum in
writing, in a newspaper, pamphlet, or magazine, or in any
package of newspapers, pamphlets, or magazines, or
make any writing or memorandum thereon, which he shall
have delivered into any post-office, or to any person for
that purpose, in order that the same may be carried by
post, free of letter postage, he shall forfeit the sum of five
dollars for every such offence.
Act of 1845.
Sec. 9. And be it further enacted, That it shall not be
lawful for any person or persons to establish any private
express or expresses for the conveyance, nor in any
manner to cause to be conveyed, or provide for the
conveyance or transportation, by regular trips, or at stated
periods or intervals, from one city, town, or other place, to
any other city, town, or place, in the United States,
between and from and to which cities, towns, or other
places, the United States mail is regularly transported,
under the authority of the Post-Office Department, of any
letters, packets, or packages of letters, or other matter
properly transmittable in the United States mail, except
newspapers, pamphlets, magazines, and periodicals; and
each and every person offending against this provision, or
aiding and assisting therein, or acting as such private
express, shall, for each time any letter or letters, packet or
packages, or other matter properly transmittable by mail,
except newspapers, pamphlets, magazines, and
periodicals, shall or may be, by him, her, or them, or
through his, her, or their means or instrumentality, in
whole or in part, conveyed or transported contrary to the
true intent, spirit, and meaning of this section, forfeit and
pay the sum of one hundred and fifty dollars.
Sec. 10. And be it further enacted, That it shall not be
lawful for any stage coach, railroad car, steamboat,
packetboat, or other vehicle or vessel, nor any of the
owners, managers, servants, or crews of either, which
regularly perform trips at stated periods on a post route,
or between two or more cities, towns, or other places,
from one to the other of which the United States mail is
regularly conveyed under the authority of the Post-Office
Department, to transport or convey, otherwise than in the
mail, any letter or letters, packet or packages of letters, or
other mailable matter whatsoever, except such as may
have relation to some part of the cargo of such
steamboat, packetboat, or other vessel, or to some article
at the same time conveyed by the same stage coach,
railroad car, or other vehicle, and excepting also,
newspapers, pamphlets, magazines, and periodicals; and
for every such offence, the owner or owners of the stage
coach, railroad car, steamboat, packetboat, or other
vehicle or vessel, shall forfeit and pay the sum of one
hundred dollars; and the driver, captain, conductor, or
person having charge of any such stage coach, railroad
car, steamboat, packetboat, or other vehicle or vessel, at
the time of the commission of any such offence, and who
shall not at that time be the owner thereof, in whole or in
part, shall, in like manner, forfeit and pay, in every such
case of offence, the sum of fifty dollars.
Sec. 11. And be it further enacted, That the owner or
owners of every stage coach, railroad car, steamboat, or
other vehicle or vessel, which shall, with the knowledge of
any owner or owners, in whole or in part, or with the
knowledge or connivance of the driver, conductor, captain,
or other person having charge of any such stage coach,
railroad car, steamboat, or other vessel or vehicle, convey
or transport any person or persons acting or employed as
a private express for the conveyance of letters, packets, or
packages of letters, or other mailable matter, and actually
in possession of such mailable matter, for the purpose of
transportation, contrary to the spirit, true intent, and
meaning of the preceding sections of this law, shall be
subject to the like fines and penalties as are hereinbefore
provided and directed in the case of persons acting as
such private expresses, and of persons employing the
same; but nothing in this act contained shall be construed
to prohibit the conveyance or transmission of letters,
packets, or packages, or other matter, to any part of the
United States, by private hands, no compensation being
tendered or received therefore in any way, or by a special
messenger employed only for the single particular
occasion.
Sec. 12. And be it further enacted, That all persons
whatsoever who shall, after the passage of this act,
transmit by any private express, or other means by this
act declared to be unlawful, any letter or letters, package
or packages, or other mailable matter, excepting
newspapers, pamphlets, magazines, and periodicals, or
who shall place or cause to be deposited at any appointed
place, for the purpose of being transported by such
unlawful means, any matter or thing properly
transmittable by mail, excepting newspapers, pamphlets,
magazines, and periodicals, or who shall deliver any such
matter, excepting newspapers, pamphlets, magazines, and
periodicals, for transmission to any agent or agents of
such unlawful expresses, shall, for each and every
offence, forfeit and pay the sum of fifty dollars.
[The 8th section of the Act of August 31, 1852, provides
that letters enclosed in "Government Envelopes," so
called, having the stamp printed thereon, may be
conveyed out of the mail. Provided, That the said
envelope shall be duly sealed, or otherwise firmly and
securely closed, so that such letter cannot be taken
therefrom without tearing or destroying such envelope;
and the same duly directed and addressed, and the date
of such letter, or the receipt or transmission thereof, to be
written or stamped, or otherwise appear on such
envelope.]
* * * "And if any person shall use, or attempt to use, for
the conveyance of any letter, or other mailable matter or
thing, over any post-road of the United States, either by
mail or otherwise, any such stamped letter envelope
which has been before used for a like purpose, such
person shall be liable to a penalty of fifty dollars, to be
recovered, in the name of the United States, in any court
having competent jurisdiction."—Sec. 8, Act of 1853.
[Newspapers for subscribers may go in or out of the mail;
but pamphlets, magazines, &c., if intended to supply
regular subscribers, must go in the mail.—Act of 1847.]
Act of 1847.
Sec. 2. And be it further enacted, That all moneys taken
from the mails of the United States by robbery, theft, or
otherwise, which have come or may hereafter come into
the possession or custody of any of the agents of the
Post-Office Department, or any other officers of the United
States, or any other person or persons whatever, shall be
paid to the order of the Post Master General, to be kept by
him as other moneys of the Post-Office Department, to
and for the use and benefit of the rightful owner, to be
paid whenever satisfactory proof thereof shall be made;
and upon the failure of any person in the employment of
the United States to pay over such moneys when
demanded, the person so refusing shall be subject to the
penalties prescribed by law against defaulting officers.
Sec. 13. And be it further enacted, That it shall not be
lawful to deposit in any post-office, to be conveyed in the
mail, two or more letters directed to different persons
enclosed in the same envelope or packet; and every
person so offending shall forfeit the sum of ten dollars, to
be recovered by action qui tam, one half for the use of the
informer, and the other half for the use of the Post-Office
Department: Provided, That this prohibition shall not apply
to any letter or packet directed to any foreign country.
Act of 1852.
Sec. 3. And be it further enacted, That if any person shall
steal, purloin, embezzle, or obtain by any false pretence,
or shall aid or assist in stealing, purloining, embezzling, or
obtaining by any false pretence, or shall knowingly and
unlawfully make, forge, or counterfeit, or cause to be
unlawfully made, forged, or counterfeited, or knowingly
aid or assist in falsely and unlawfully making, forging, or
counterfeiting any key suited to any lock which has been
or shall be adopted for use by the Post-Office Department
of the United States, and which shall be in use on any of
the mails or mail bags of the said Post-Office Department,
or shall have in his possession any such mail key or any
such mail lock, with the intent unlawfully or improperly to
use, sell, or otherwise dispose of the same, or cause the
same to be unlawfully or improperly used, sold or
otherwise disposed of, or who being employed in the
manufacture of the locks or keys for the use of the said
Post-Office Department, whether as contractor or
otherwise, shall deliver or cause to be delivered any
finished or unfinished key or lock used or designed by the
said Post-Office Department, or the interior part of any
such mail lock, to any person not duly authorized under
the hand of the Post Master General of the United States
and the seal of the said Post-Office Department to receive
the same, (unless such person so receiving the same shall
be the contractor for furnishing such locks and keys, or
engaged in the manufacture thereof in the manner
authorized by the contract, or the agent for such
manufacturer,) such person so offending shall be deemed
guilty of felony, and, on conviction thereof, shall be
imprisoned for a period not exceeding ten years.
Sec. 4. And be it further enacted, That if any person shall
steal, purloin or embezzle any mail bags in use by or
belonging to the Post-Office Department of the United
States, or any other property in use by or belonging to the
said Post-Office Department, or shall, for any lucre, gain,
or convenience, appropriate any such property to his own,
or any other than its proper use, or for any lucre or gain
shall convey away any such property to the hindrance or
detriment of the public service of the United States, the
person so offending, his counsellors, aiders, and abettors,
(knowing of and privy to any offence aforesaid,) shall, on
conviction thereof, if the value of such property shall
exceed twenty-five dollars, be deemed guilty of felony,
and shall be imprisoned for a period not exceeding three
years; or if the value of such property shall be less than
twenty-five dollars, shall be imprisoned not more than one
year, or be fined not less than ten dollars, nor more than
two hundred dollars, for every such offence.
Act of 1855.
Sec. 2. And be it further enacted, That it shall not be
lawful for any post master or other person to sell any
postage stamp or stamped envelope for any larger sum
than that indicated upon the face of such postage stamp
or for a larger sum than that charged therefore by the
Post-Office Department; and any person who shall violate
this provision shall be deemed guilty of a misdemeanor,
and, on conviction thereof, shall be fined in any sum not
less than ten nor more than five hundred dollars. This act
to take effect and be in force from and after the
commencement of the next fiscal quarter after its
passage. Provided, That nothing herein contained shall be
so construed as to alter the laws in relation to the franking
privilege.
Sec. 3. And be it further enacted, That for the greater
security of valuable letters posted for transmission in the
mails of the United States, the Post Master General be and
hereby is authorized to establish a uniform plan for the
registration of such letters on application of parties
posting the same, and to require the pre-payment of the
postage, as well as a registration fee of five cents on
every such letter or packet to be accounted for by post
masters receiving the same in such manner as the Post
Master General shall direct: Provided however. That such
registration shall not be compulsory; and it shall not
render the Post-Office Department or its revenue liable for
the loss of such letters or packets or the contents thereof.
The delivery of letters can be greatly facilitated by means of a very
simple improvement in the letter case for the "general delivery,"
which has already been adopted to some extent, with the most
satisfactory results.
In the early history of post-offices, the old-fashioned letter case
divided off in alphabetical order, or by vowels, answered a tolerable
purpose, and so it would now in very small offices,—but as
population increased, and fifty or more letters had to be overhauled
before the applicant could receive an answer, some relief both for
post masters and the public became absolutely indispensable, and
various trifling changes and improvements were adopted—but none
of them were found to be "up to the times," till the introduction of
the labor and time saving invention called the "Square of the
Alphabet." It is believed to have been originally planned and adopted
in the post-office at Providence, R. I. Since then, the dimensions of
the case and the arrangement of the boxes have been varied to suit
the amount of business in the comparatively small number of offices
that have introduced it. But the size and plan exhibited in the
prefixed diagram, is believed to be the most convenient and simple,
and well suited to places varying in population, from five thousand
to fifty thousand.
The practical advantage is, that by the division of the letters when
placed in the pigeon holes, at least four applications can be correctly
answered, where one can be under the old plan of crowding a large
number of letters together. And where this improved case occupies a
position opposite the "general delivery" window, many individuals
soon learn the location of the box where their letters should be, and
in case it is empty, inquiry becomes unnecessary.
The rows of letters of the alphabet running horizontally, from left to
right, represent the surname, and are several times repeated for
convenience, and as an aid to the eye in tracing given initials; while
the perpendicular rows of letters stand for the Christian name, and
are used doubly, to reduce the size of the case. Where it is
necessary, however, the Christian initials can also be placed singly,
by enlarging the case, or making it in two sections, using only half of
the alphabet for each, placing the two sections in an angular form,
or backing one against the other, and putting the entire frame on an
upright shaft turning upon a pivot at top and bottom, near the
general delivery, so as to admit of turning the case, as the locality of
the initials inquired for may require.
The plan for example works thus:—John Jones calls for a letter. The
person in attendance glances at the J. on the horizontal line, and
then runs the eye to the range of the J. on the perpendicular line,
and that is the box in which Jones' letter ought to be. One for Isaac
Jones would be in the same place, in a case constructed after the
above arrangement.
 Its dimensions are as follows:—
Size of the entire case, 5 feet 1-1/4 inches, by 4 feet 2-1/2 inches.
Size of pigeon holes or letter boxes, 3-3/4 by 2-1/4 inches.
Thickness of outside of case and lettered shelves, 3/4 of an inch.
Intermediate shelves, 1/4 inch thick.
Upright partitions of boxes, 1/8 inch thick—partitions cut out
concave in front.
The legs or supports of the case should be about 2 feet in length,
and "white wood" is considered the best material for the entire case.
Paint can be used for the lettering, or letters printed upon paper,
and pasted on separately, will answer the purpose.