| Show it s time to send your presents present s to S servicemen ervi cemen christmas mail s month will be sept 15 to od oct 15 privilege granted on overseas gifts during this period ahe L he volume of christmas mail going overseas to men and women in the armed forces this year will reach a new high the office of war information predicts approximately 33 xa uniformed men and women in the army and navy postal services are preparing for their biggest job that of moving an estimated packages of christmas presents three times as many as last year to the military men and women overseas army postal officers are preparing their organization to move about twice as many christmas parcels as were handled in 1943 when holiday packages were sent abroad the navy mail service expects nearly four times the volume of gifts handled in 1943 through fleet post offices in new york and san francisco A total of packages went through the fleet post offices last year of them to advanced bases or ships at sea and to ships putting in at american ports the service postal organizations can handle this enormous volume more easily with a little assistance from friends and relatives of soldiers and sailors in 1943 the army post office transmitted more than 20 million holiday packages and an additional dit ional 75 million to million pieces of miscellaneous mail the navy moved approximately parcels overseas last christmas and approximately four million packages to personnel on shore stations in the united states and more than 80 million letters and christmas cards during the christmas mail period last year the army and navy intend int end to make every effort to deliver every christmas gift overseas on time and intact but a sailor will not be cheered if the gift he receives from his mother for example an eppen sive wristwatch proves to have been ruined because it was completely buried in a box of cookies that have crumbled in transit the navy bavy said distances heat cold sand dampness fleet or combat operations and the fortunes of war are hazards that complicate the delivery of all mail overseas even without the christmas rush the only factor in christmas gift delivery over which the sender has control is the type and condition of the parcel when it leaves his hands the army and navy emphasized mail regulations 1 christmas mail month will comprise the 30 day period from september 15 to october 15 1944 for all those in the armed services overseas this period is the only time during which packages may be sent to soldiers overseas without a specific written request from the soldier or without an APO cancellation anly one package may be sent by or on behalf of the same person or concern to or for the same soldier in one week during this month 2 mark the package christmas parcel using a label that does not resemble a postage mark or stamp 3 the package must weigh not more than five pounds wrap wrapped and must be no longer than 15 inches in length and SG inches in length and girth comb combined inid MS 4 0 z 0 ari V J i NO P g 0 va Z mf whenever the presents arrive is christmas to soldiers across the sea sometimes the army and navy postal services deliver the goods sooner than expected as happened last year in italy when packages from home arrived late in november the boys opened them up at once since they know what be doing or where be on christmas day its safest to mail early however because unforeseen delays can come along any time the army recommends that the package container be a box of metal wood or solid doub double leface faced d corrugated fiberboard reinforced with strong gummed paper tape or tied with strong twine or both standardized boxes for mailing christmas gifts to military personnel overseas will probably be on the market by september 1 I the war production board reported approximately special applications for the purchase by retailers and box jobbers of these boxes have been filed with said that the standard boxes are to be of pound tested corrugated paperboard 12 by 6 by 4 inches in regulation slotted carton style with taped manufacturers joints the post office department has recommended that gummed flaps be supplied with the boxes for sealing the parcels reported blanks for address and return address will appear on the panels of t the h box also the statement this box to be used only for sending merchandise to a member of the armed forces outside the united states 4 address the package completely and legibly print the address so that it will not run streak smudge ge or fade place an additional copy of the address and return address inside the package so that if it comes apart or the wrapper is torn soiled or lost the additional copy may be used do not use gummed labels label for addressing the army and navy point out that they know what not to send overseas for christmas on the basis of past experience but what to send is is another thing altogether in general era soldiers and sailors and others like gifts that are unobtainable where they are and remind them biln with special significance of home what not to send the services advise generally general ly against sending articles that may be obtained by sailors in ships service stores or by soldiers in post ex L V X Y 1 V 94 1 af i packages get rough handling all along the way and unless they are securely wrapped and tied they may be damaged in transit here is a scene in the new york postoffice post office showing how busy sorters toss parcels into the hand trucks the big pil pile in the rear consists of packages that are coming undone the string working off or the wrapping loose by the time your gifts have made the long trip in a mail sack they have been subjected to a tot lot of bouncing around on the railroad and boat the last stage may be made in a jeep or airplane changes but soap for example which is available in most post exchanges is a valued gift particularly for soldiers on the move for in advancing they sometimes outdistance for hours or days even mobile post exchanges perishable foods intoxicants weapons poisons and in flammables including matches and lighter fluids are taboo and will not be accepted for mailing overseas A navy postal officer stat stationed stationer ionee overseas wrote during the christmas rush we kept a considerable force of men busy re wrapping parcels and salvaging everything fit fox foi forwarding A very great service could be rendered to us out here it the widest possible publicity could be given to these matters the people should be warned not nol to send liquids of any kind they the should use every possible precaution in in packing powder of any kind fruit is not only dangerous to their own mail but it causes serious damage to the other fellows mail warn them about candy melting fruit cakes and cookies crumble and decay above all the fact should be stressed that mail sacks can bis be baked in the hot sun and drenched in transit all in the same day the navy has found that unsuitable gifts include leather goods these mold in the tropics chocolates these melt cigarettes obtainable tai more cheaply in ships stores cameras forbidden electrical equipment there may be no n electricity available food dunles tinned liquor clothing unless requested fragile articles and soft candies and pastries are poor gifts for obvious reasons the army reported gifts poorly wrapped the army cautioned that boxes ol 01 miscellaneous gifts should be packed carefully razor blades for example require extra wrapping numerous cases have been recorded of improperly wrapped razor blades working through packages in 1943 approximately 15 per cent benl of the christmas mail handled by the navy was delayed in transit because of incorrect or incomplete completa in addressing the navy reported one navy postal officer wrote from the pacific theater it needs no considerable stretch of your imagination to understand how mail looks after it hiis has been shipped for thousands of miles by water then worked and shipped again reworked and re shipped until it arrives at a fleet post office for directory service by this time any of the parcel post that was at all inclined to be perishable is thoroughly decomposed causing damage to mails adjacent only today we dumped up a sack containing the contents of a parcel which had come entirely apa apart there were rotten apples decayed oranges melted candy and stale cake crumbs throughout the entire sack this happens all too frequently quent ly A great deal of it was originally anally poor poorly ly wrapped many parcels have sticker addresses the sacks may cave have become wet in transit causing the labels to come off frequently these stickers have been hurriedly slapped on leaving tiny I 1 air pockets beneath them friction I 1 in transit causes these to wear off in spots all too often addresses are in pencil or if in ink the ink h has as become wet and illegible again this year soldiers soldier overs overseas aas will be able to select gifts for the folks back home from the mail order catalogue operated by the army exchange service special services division listed gifts include mens toiletries toil etries haberdashery leather goods luggage games including playing cards books magazine subscriptions script ions dolls toys doll dishes stuffed animals smokers supplies candy perfumes cosmetics andi and I 1 Ut b gerie I 1 |
