A Postal Kitty...!

I, like many others, have a few complaints about our postal service. However, I don't think I would go so far as some folks did in this article From Listverse. This move just proves my point about truly disturbed people with way too much time on their hands and the troubling things they can come up with.

A Cat

Photo credit: The Atlantic

When we think of mail services, most people imagine their carriers walking between houses to drop off letters. In New York, a more impressive system was developed in the 1890s. A series of tubes allowed mail to be shot across the city using pneumatic pressure.

The first items sent were various papers and a copy of the Bible. But the operators were not content with these pedestrian items. The next canister sent through the tubes contained a live tortoiseshell cat. A postal worker recorded the event:
How it could live after being shot at terrific speed from Station P in the Produce Exchange Building, making several turns before reaching Broadway and Park Row, I cannot conceive, but it did. It seemed to be dazed for a minute or two but started to run and was quickly secured and placed in a basket that had been provided for that purpose.

When other branches to the pneumatic system were opened, a canister holding a goldfish bowl and live fish was sent through. Apparently, the fish arrived unshaken by their travels.

I can only imagine the nightmare that would occur if a system such as this were in place in this day and age.Scary, isn't it?

Coffee in the kitchen this morning. Rain is coming in later.