THE CADUCEUS.
LOTS OF MAIL
HOSPITAL POST OFFICE HAN
DLES 5,000 LETTERS A DAY.
Five thousand letters come and go
through the base hospital post of
fice a day, when there is an ordinary
run of mail traffic in the camp.
There are nearly always seven
sacks of mail handled in the transac
tions between the hospital post of
fice and the main office down in the
camp. These sacks hold about ten
pounds of mail each. As a result the
hospital office is in the 750 pound
class, as that is the daily weight,
cared for, and is far above many of
the small town offices of the country.
The little town aspect of the hos
pital office is witnessed twice each
day when the representatives of the
many wards gather in the receiving
ward, about the post office window,
to await their allotments of incom
ing mail. Each ward appoints a con
valescent patient to go for the mail.
The patient, dressed in his character
istic garb of pajamas and robe, gener
ally seeks the post office several min
utes before time for the mail to be
put up. The result is a merry gath
ering near the postoffloe door while
Sergeant Jenkins and his crew sorts
the newly received mail.
The two mail deliveries are receiv
ed at 9 o’clock in the morning and at
2 o’clock in the afternoon. It requires
about a half hour for the three postal
clerks to distribute the letters and
packages to their proper sections.
The mail is scattered into many
pigeon holes and sacks. There is a
section of shelving for each one of
the hospital wards. There are sacks
awaiting the deliveries for the nurse s
home, officers’ ward and the barracks
row.
Every army regiment carries its
own post office equipment and mail
clerks but the hospital office is much
more complete than any departmen
tal office. At the present the base
hospital postoffice is receiving nearly
half the mail of the entire camp.
Work Systematized.
Sergeant Ellis L. Jenkins, in charge
of the office, has systematized the
work of the three men who operate
the branch post office. Each one per
forms a part of the effort ol keeping
track of all the patients in the hos
pital as well as the comings and go
ings of medical units which halt here
for a time.
Sergeant Jenkins has been the chief
postal clerk since he came to the base
hospital, from Port Ethan Allen, last
October. His assistants are Privates
Ira Hart and Frank Gavagan. Hart
is the only member of the force who
was a post office employe in civilian
life. He was a mail carrier at Hart
ford, Conn. Sergeant Jenkins was
formerly a messenger for the Adams
Express Company and Gavagan was
an insurance salesman.
“Passing the buck”, is a notable
army sport in every branch of ser
vice and the base hospital post of
fice claims to be the court of refuge
for Camp Greene. Whenever a sol
dier .cannot be located in camp and
the central post master is distracted
as to the meaning of the address it is
believed that he sends the letter out
for the hospital postal clerks to wor
ry over. There are dozens of misfit
addresses in each mail. In some
cases the letters are addressed to dif
ferent camps. Sometimes halt the
name is gone.
Every now and then a patient, who
has been in the hospital long enough
to have spent his army pay, sends a
stampless ’etter. There are many of
them each day. In most cases he
neglects to give a return address.
Those are the chances for postmaster
Jenkins to. “pass the buck” and he
sends the letters on for somebody
else to trouble over.
LAYING THE CLOTH
FATHER DIES.
Private Joseph Mathews, wardmas-
ter in D G, and whose hdme is in Dor
chester, Mass., was granted a live-day
extension to his furlough because of
the death of his father.
FOR HER SERVICE STAR
BOARDER.
All through New England and out
into the western prairies this sort of
preparation has been going on for sev-
erals weeks. As our comrades came
back from their furloughs they tell us
about it. As the furlough season, is
in its midst, we think it especially
timely for th© benefit of those who
have returned, and who live in the
memory of such bits ol cheer, and
for those who are yet to journey home
that we portray this idea of the wel
come as crayoned by Private Bissell.
LESS AND MORE.
The, burdens of the officers and en
listed men of Base Hospjtal No. 51
have not been lightened by the order
to lighten - their maltetrial burdens.
None of the men will be allowed to
take barrack bags. The officers will
be reduced to fifty pounds of bedding.
Only one suit of clothes will be grant-
e dthe enlisted men. The burden is
to be carried on the back but it is the
burden that is to be left behind that
worries.
Major Eveth who has. been ill for the
past few days is now improving.
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