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Show "Harmless Animals" in the Parcel Post "DLEAItY-EYED and warty croco-J' croco-J' dllcs a yard or so in leugtli, wnose digestion enables them to chew up broom handles as a man would a toothpick, may be "harmless" In the legal sense of the word when shipped by parcel post, but Postmaster A. L. Behymer of Cincinnati has his own personal doubts about the matter. In addressing the. National Association Associa-tion of Postmasters, Mr. Behymer explained ex-plained that live animals and various kinds of barnyard stock, under the law, were entitled to mall privileges. If, In transit, they wore badges inscribed in-scribed "Harmless." The Cincinnati postmaster was Inclined In-clined to doubt that fair postmistresses or a bevy of young women clerks In the home postofllce would look upon a crate ofllve mice as "harmless." Also, Mr. Behymer appeared not to look with serenity upon the prospect some day of being obliged to "attend, water and feed various fowls and irritated livestock" live-stock" as a part of the dally postal routine. The evolution of the egg, he felt, was not so bad, explaining that first the parcel post handled crates of egg9, then the contents of such eggs after hatching, In the form of live chicks, v - only to be followed by full-grown chanticleers chan-ticleers and domesticated motherly hens. But when alligators and other gruesome grue-some creatures happen along In the usual run of business and, as was the case recently at an Ohio postofflce, escape from their crate and wallow about the ofllce snapping broomsticks and otherwise giving vent to playful pranks until reduced to the official "harmless" stage, he declared It was about time to call a halt. The convention filled to take any action upon the revelations of the Cincinnati Cin-cinnati postmaster, evidently feeling the "harmless" phase of parcel post management would in the proper course of events be corrected or modified modi-fied by the postal authorities. |
