THE DEAD LETTER OFFICE.

Patea Mail, Volume IX, Issue 1068, 3 August 1883, Page 2

THE DEAD LETTER OFFICE.

During the past year 82,667 unclaimed letters were disposed of in the Dead Letter Office, 53,507 being opened and returned to the writers; 54 reissued, 6189 destroyed, the balance being returned unopened. There were also 13,741 book packets dealt with by the Dead Letter Office. The undermentioned articles of value were found enclosed in letters opened in the Dead Letter Office, and returned to the senders where practicable ;—156 money orders, £528 2s 2d; 57 bank drafts, £5341 10s 3d ; 86 cheques, £799 19s; promissory note, £52 8s ; postage stamps, £7 3s 8d ; bank notes, £l4B ; gold, £l3 10s; silver and copper, £2 3s lid; representing a total of £6892 17s. In addition, 4 gold rings set with jewels, 2 plain gold rings, 1 ladies’ silver watch and chain, 3 silver Waltham hunting watches, 1 silver lever watch, 1 greenstone bar, gold mounted ; 4 gold nuggets, portion of gold chain with three keys and two seals attached Maltese greenstone cross, gold mounted and knuri-gura. ornament, book-shaped ;

gold exhibition medals, and a silver and pebble brooch, were received at the Dead Letter Office. 1240 unclaimed registered letters were dealt with, 55 letters were detained for postage, 5 of which were subsequently forwarded. 439 newspapers and 360 other articles without addresses were received ; of these, 62 were delivered. 62 letters were posted without addresses. 9 letters with obscene and libellous addresses. 121 letters imperfectly and wrongly addressed. 1,205 letters were refused. 2 letters were posted with previouslyused posted postage stamps.— Post.