Not proofread: Created page with "<section begin="s1"/>16,389 letter-carriers were serving a population of 32,000,000. An extension to rural districts was started in 1896, and by December 1901, 4,000,000 of th..."
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</noinclude><section begin="s1"/>16,389 letter-carriers were serving a population of 32,000,000.
An extension to rural districts was started in 1896, and by
December 1901, 4,000,000 of the rural population were within
the scope of free delivery. Since the 1st of October 1885 a
system has been in force for the immediate delivery by
special messengers of letters, parcels, &c., for addresses within
certain areas. A special ten-cent stamp (or its equivalent) is
required in addition to the ordinary postage.
The registry system did not attain any degree of excellence
until after 1860; and the money-order system was first established
in 1864. The aggregate number of money orders, domestic and
foreign, issued during the fiscal year 1906 was 61,497,86I, of the
value of $507,563,719 A step towards the popularization of the
registry system was authorized in December 1899; letter-carriers
in many city districts now accept and register letters at the door
of the householder. Sea post offices for sorting mails during the
Atlantic transit were established in December 1890 on the steamers
of the North German Lloyd and Hamburg-American lines, and later
on the vessels of the International Navigation Company. This
plan effects a mving of from two to fourteen hours in the delivery
of mails from Europe. The issue of “ postal notes, " commenced
in 1883, was abandoned in 1894. The introduction of “ postal
checks" for small fixed amounts has been advocated. A new
postal convention with Canada, removing the former restriction
against sending merchandise, came into force on the IS(of March
1888. Uniformity of postage rates having been previously established,
the United States and Canada became virtually one postal
territory.
A convention for an exchange of parcels with Jamaica, admitting
articles not exceeding II lb, was agreed to in 1887; and since
then conventions on similar lines have been concluded with other
colonies and countries in America. The first arrangement of
the kind with any European country was made with Germany,
and came into operation on the 1st of October 1899. The postal
laws, regulations and domestic conditions of the United States
have been extended, by act of Congress, to Porto Rico and Hawaii.
The “island possessions” (Guam, the Philippine Archipelago and
Tutuila) have also been brought within the scope of the domestic
conditions, including the rates of postage. The service introduced
into Cuba, though modelled on the American plan, is practically
autonomous.
T telegraphs.-The formation of a postal telegraph system has
continued to be a subject of discussion by the postmasters general.
In his report for the year 1888 D. M. Dickinson proposed
the appointment of an expert commission authorized
to erect short experimental lines. His successor, John Wanamaker,
for four years vigorously advocated a limited postal
telegraph service. Under this proposal, contracting telegraph
companies were to furnish lines, instruments and operators, and
to transmit messages at rates fixed by the government; the
department was to receive a small sum per message, to cover
its expenses in collection and delivery. In 1894 Mr Bissell
expressed the opinion that a government system would be
unprofitable and inexpedient.
Savings Banks.-The establishment of postal savings banks
was also recommended by Mr Wanamaker in his reports for the
years 1889 to 1892, and by ]. A. Gary in 1897. What is regarded
as a step in this direction was taken in 1898, when the postal
regulations were modified to allow money orders to be made
payable at the ohice of issue, -a “mild and very convenient
adaptation of the European savings bank system, without the
payment of interest” (Mr Emory Smith). Finally in 1910 a
system of postal savings banks was authorized by Congress.
AUTno1111112s.-Postmaster-General's Annual Reports: Joyce,
History of the British Post Ojiee (1893); J. Wilson Hyde, The Post
in Grant and Farm (1894); A. H. Norway, History of the Packet
Service (1895); F. E. Baines, Forty Years at the Post Ojiee (1895);
Rail-ces, Life of Rt. Hon. H. C. Raikes (1898); L' Union postale
uriiverselle, sa fortdation et son développement (Lausanne, 1900);
mémoire publié par le bureau international at l'occasion de la
célébration clu xxvme anniversaire de l'union 2-5 juillet 1900; Statistique
générale du service postal (Bern); Statistigue générale de la
télégraphie (Bern).
The various postal and telegraph rates and regulations of the
United Kingdom appear in the quarterly Post Ojice Guide (price 6d.).
For the United States, see the U.S. Ujhcial Postal Guide.(T. A. I.)
<section end="s1"/>
<section begin="s2"/>'''POST AND PAIR,''' a card game popular in the 16th and 17th centuries. A hand consisted of three cards, a pair royal ranking highest, or failing this, the, highest pair. Another name of the game was Pink.
<section end="s2"/>
<section begin="s3"/>'''POSTER''', a placard in the form either of letterpress or illustration, for posting up or otherwise exhibiting in public to
attract attention to its contents. According to Brcwer':=
Dictionary of Phrase and Fable, before the Fire of London the rails
and posts which protected foot-passengers in the streets were
used for affixing theatrical and other announcements, whence
the name of posting-bills or posters; and in later times the name
has come more generally into use for any fairly large separate
sheet, illustrated or not, used to attract publicity, even though
not actually posted up. In the article ADVERTISEMENTS the
use of posters is discussed, and newspaper posters (or contents
bills) under NEWSPAPERS. But the illustrated poster has come
to represent a special 'form of artistic design.
The earliest examples of pictorial posters were adorned with
rough woodcuts. When lithography became a common commercial
process, wood-blocks ceased to be employed. The modern artistic
poster made a definite beginning in France about 1836, with a
design by Lalance to advertise a book entitled Comment meurenl
les femmes. His example was followed by C. Nanteuil, D. A. M.
Raffet, Gavarni, Bertrand, Grandville, Tony johannot, E. de
Beaumont, T. H. Frére, Edouard Manet and other artists of high
repute. Most of these early designs were printed in black on white
or tinted paper. Between IS60 and 1866 crude attempts at printing
posters in colours were made in both France and England;
In 1866 Jules Chéret began what was destined to be the most
noticeable series of pictorial placards in existence, a series containing
over a thousand items. Chéret was originally employed in a lithographic
establishment in England before he began to work for himself,
and he used his knowledge there acquired to adapt all three
primary colours, economically used, to astonishingly brilliant ends.
For a considerable time he remained without a rival, though he
had hosts of imitators. Eugene Grasset, a decorative designer
of great versatility, produced the first of a small number of placards
which, though inferior as advertisements to those of Chéret, were
learned and beautiful decorations. Somewhat later a sensation
was caused in Paris by the .mordantly grotesque posters of Henri
de Toulouse-Lautrec, in which the artist reduced detail to a minimum
and obtained bold effects by the employment of large masses
of fiat colour. Important work, similar in character to Lautrecfs,
was produced by Ibels, Bonnard, T. A. Steinlen and others. A new
and contrary direction was givento poster design by Mucha, a
Hungarian resident in Paris, whose placards are marked by delicate
colour and richness of detail. The, following are amongst French
artists who have designed posters of conspicuous merit: ].' 'L
Forain, Willette, Paléologue, Sinet, ]ossot, Roedel, Mayet, Cazals,
Biais, De Feure, A. Guillaume, Ranft, Réalier-Dumas, F. Valloton
and Metivet. Occasionally eminent French painters, such as
Carriére, Boutet de Monvel, Aman-jean, Schwabe, 'have made
essays in poster-designing. ~ ., -
In England the first artists of repute to attempt the pictorial
placard were Godfroy Durand and Vllalter Crane; but the first
bill to' attract widespread attention was one by Fred Walker to
advertise a dramatized version of The Woman in While (1871).
This was engraved on wood by W. H. Hooper. Shortly after this
time pictures by Royal Academicians and others began to be reproduced
as advertisements (the best-known case being that of
Sir John Millaisls “ Bubbles ), but these have nothing directly
to do with poster-designing. Stacy Marks, Hubert von Herkomer
(the great poster for the Jllagazine of Art), Sir Edward Poynter
and Sir' James Linton are among popular painters who have made
special drawings for reproduction as posters.
About 1894 the English poster began to improve. Designs by
Aubrey Beardsley for the Avenue Theatre, by Dudley Hardy for
various plays, and by Maurice Greiffenhagen for The Pall Mall
Budget, were widely'noticed by reason of their originality, simplicity
and effectiveness. Simplicity was carried even farther by
“ the Beggarstaff Brothers ” (James Pryde and William Nicholson),
whose posters are perhaps the most' original yet produced by
Englishmen. Among other British designers the following have executed artistic and interesting placards: Frank Brangwyn, R. Anning Bell, John Hassall, Cecil Aldin, Phil May, Leonard Raven-Hill, Henry Harland, Robert Fowler, Wilson Steer, Charles R. Mackintosh, MacNair and MacDonald, Edgar Wilson, Charles I. Foulkes, Mabel Dearmer, Albert Morrow and C. Wilhelm. Poster design on the continent of Europe has been largely influenced by French work, but designs of much originality have been made in Germany, Belgium, Italy and Spain. In Germany, among the most typical posters are those of Sattler, Otto Fischer, Gysis, T. T. Heine, Speyer, Max Klinger, Dasio, Hofmann and I... Zumbrusch. The principal Belgian designers include Privat Livemont, Rassenfosse, Berchmans, Meunier, Duyck and Crespin, V. Mignot, Donnay, Everzepoel, Cassiers and Toussaint. Of Italian designers those whose work is most characteristic are Mataloni and Hohenstein; while the best Spanish posters-those to advertise bull-fights and fairs-are mostly anonymous. The Spanish artists Utrillo and Casas have signed posters of more than<section end="s3"/><noinclude><references/></div></noinclude>