Mail-bag Thefts
Sm,—Janus, rommenting on the alleged theft by two little boys of mail-bags from a train in Portsmouth station, says it is a sobering thought that he, or anyone else, might do the same thing. What makes this incident particularly disturbing is that two packages in the bags had been registered. If no more care than this is taken to guard against the stealing of articles entrusted to the keeping of the Postmaster General and his servants, even when registered, which, one supposed, ensured their special guarding, for what is a registration fee paid ?
One could steal not only mail-bags from trains, with little difficulty in some cases, but could remove also articles from a guard's van, to which luggage not carried by hand must be taken by a traveller. In every Continental country of which I know anything luggage placed in a van must be registered, and will not be given up on demand with- out proof of lawful ownership of it. In Britain one has only to tell a guard or porter that this or that package belongs to one for it to be handed over without question. A relative of mine once saw some suitcases that were hers being driven away from a station in a taxi, but managed to have that taxi stopped before her luggage and the young man inside the car were out of reach.—I am, Sir, your Obedient
servant, JESSIE S. BOYD. The Birks, Arnside, Carnforth, Lancashire.
Previous page
