Ten Years Among the Mail Bags, 1855

Ten Years Among the Mail Bags, 1855 PDF Author: J. Holbrook
Publisher: Forgotten Books
ISBN: 9781331593676
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 468

Get Book Here

Book Description
Excerpt from Ten Years Among the Mail Bags, 1855: Or Notes From the Diary of a Special Agent of the Post-Office Department A mail bag is an epitome of human life. All the elements which go to form the happiness or misery of individuals - the raw material, so to speak, of human hopes and fears - here exist in a chaotic state. These elements are imprisoned, like the winds in the fabled cave of olus, biding their time to go forth and fulfil their office, whether it be to refresh and invigorate the drooping flower, or to bring destruo tion upon the proud and stately forest-king. Well is it for the peace of mind of those who have in temporary charge these discordant forces, that they cannot trace the course of each missive as it passes from their hands. For although many hearts are made glad by' these silent messengers, yet in every day's mail there is enough of sadness and misery, lying torpid like serpents, until warmed into venomous life by a glance of the eye, to cast a gloom over the spirits of any one who should know it all; and to add new emphasis to the words of the wise man, He that increaseth knowledge, increaseth sorrow. But until they are released from their temporary captivity, the letters guard in grim silence their varied contents. Joy and sorrow as yet have no voice; vice and crime are yet concealed, running, like subterranean streams, from the mind which originated, to the mind which is to receive their influence. The mail bag is as great a leveller as the grave, and it is only by the superscription in either case, that one occupant can be distinguished from the other. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

Ten Years Among the Mail Bags, 1855

Ten Years Among the Mail Bags, 1855 PDF Author: J. Holbrook
Publisher: Forgotten Books
ISBN: 9781331593676
Category : Biography & Autobiography
Languages : en
Pages : 468

Get Book Here

Book Description
Excerpt from Ten Years Among the Mail Bags, 1855: Or Notes From the Diary of a Special Agent of the Post-Office Department A mail bag is an epitome of human life. All the elements which go to form the happiness or misery of individuals - the raw material, so to speak, of human hopes and fears - here exist in a chaotic state. These elements are imprisoned, like the winds in the fabled cave of olus, biding their time to go forth and fulfil their office, whether it be to refresh and invigorate the drooping flower, or to bring destruo tion upon the proud and stately forest-king. Well is it for the peace of mind of those who have in temporary charge these discordant forces, that they cannot trace the course of each missive as it passes from their hands. For although many hearts are made glad by' these silent messengers, yet in every day's mail there is enough of sadness and misery, lying torpid like serpents, until warmed into venomous life by a glance of the eye, to cast a gloom over the spirits of any one who should know it all; and to add new emphasis to the words of the wise man, He that increaseth knowledge, increaseth sorrow. But until they are released from their temporary captivity, the letters guard in grim silence their varied contents. Joy and sorrow as yet have no voice; vice and crime are yet concealed, running, like subterranean streams, from the mind which originated, to the mind which is to receive their influence. The mail bag is as great a leveller as the grave, and it is only by the superscription in either case, that one occupant can be distinguished from the other. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works.

The Postal Age

The Postal Age PDF Author: David M. Henkin
Publisher: University of Chicago Press
ISBN: 0226327221
Category : History
Languages : en
Pages : 238

Get Book Here

Book Description
Americans commonly recognize television, e-mail, and instant messaging as agents of pervasive cultural change. But many of us may not realize that what we now call snail mail was once just as revolutionary. As David M. Henkin argues in The Postal Age, a burgeoning postal network initiated major cultural shifts during the nineteenth century, laying the foundation for the interconnectedness that now defines our ever-evolving world of telecommunications. This fascinating history traces these shifts from their beginnings in the mid-1800s, when cheaper postage, mass literacy, and migration combined to make the long-established postal service a more integral and viable part of everyday life. With such dramatic events as the Civil War and the gold rush underscoring the importance and necessity of the post, a surprisingly broad range of Americans—male and female, black and white, native-born and immigrant—joined this postal network, regularly interacting with distant locales before the existence of telephones or even the widespread use of telegraphy. Drawing on original letters and diaries from the period, as well as public discussions of the expanding postal system, Henkin tells the story of how these Americans adjusted to a new world of long-distance correspondence, crowded post offices, junk mail, valentines, and dead letters. The Postal Age paints a vibrant picture of a society where possibilities proliferated for the kinds of personal and impersonal communications that we often associate with more recent historical periods. In doing so, it significantly increases our understanding of both antebellum America and our own chapter in the history of communications.

Charles Dickens's American Audience

Charles Dickens's American Audience PDF Author: Robert McParland
Publisher: Lexington Books
ISBN: 0739118587
Category : Literary Criticism
Languages : en
Pages : 253

Get Book Here

Book Description
From 1837 to 1912, Charles Dickens was by far the most popular writer for American readers. Through several sources including statistics, literary biography, newspapers, memoirs, diaries, letters, and interviews, Robert McParland examines a historical time and an emerging national consciousness that defined the American identity before and after the Civil War. American voices present their views, tastes, emotional reactions and identifications, and deep attachment and love for Dickens's characters, stories, themes, and sensibilities as well as for the man himself. Bringing together contemporary reactions to Dickens and his works, this book paints a portrait of the American people and of American society and culture from 1837 to the turn of the twentieth century. It is in this view of nineteenth-century America--its people and their values, their reading habits and cultural views, the scenarios of their everyday lives even in the face of the drastic changes of the emerging nation--that Charles Dickens's American Audience makes its greatest impact.

The Union League Club of New York

The Union League Club of New York PDF Author: Union League Club (New York, N.Y.)
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : New York (N.Y.)
Languages : en
Pages : 174

Get Book Here

Book Description
Constitution by-laws, and roll of members included in vol. for 1864; charter, by-laws, and roll of members in 18 ; by-laws and roll of members, in 1868; charter, articles of Association, by-laws, house rules, and roll of members.

Report of Executive Committee, Treasurer's Report, Library Report

Report of Executive Committee, Treasurer's Report, Library Report PDF Author: Union League Club (New York, N.Y.)
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Clubs
Languages : en
Pages : 352

Get Book Here

Book Description
Constitution, by-laws, and roll of members included in vol. for 1864; charter, by-laws, and roll of members, in ; by-laws and roll of members, in 1868; vol. for include charter, articles of association, by-laws, house rules, and roll of members.

Pre-Nineteen Sixty Developments in the Bill of Rights Area

Pre-Nineteen Sixty Developments in the Bill of Rights Area PDF Author: Paul L. Murphy
Publisher: Routledge
ISBN: 1135789258
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 787

Get Book Here

Book Description
Volume 2 in the 20-volume series reproducing over 300 key articles which explore the 200-year history of the rights of American citizens. This title contains 23 essays on development of the Bill of Rights from a range of academic authors; features some work found in previously published journals. Such a collection will prove insightful for historians, students of American history and those with a vested interest in historic American law.

The History of the United States Post Office to the Year 1829

The History of the United States Post Office to the Year 1829 PDF Author: Wesley Everett Rich
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Postal service
Languages : en
Pages : 208

Get Book Here

Book Description
Postwesen ; Postgeschichte ; Vereinigte Staaten von Amerika / USA ; Geschichte ; Postverkehr ; Finanzen ; Organisation.

Dictionary of American Biography

Dictionary of American Biography PDF Author: Francis Samuel Drake
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 1046

Get Book Here

Book Description


Dictionary of American Biography, Etc

Dictionary of American Biography, Etc PDF Author: Francis Samuel Drake
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category :
Languages : en
Pages : 1042

Get Book Here

Book Description


Intellectual Privacy

Intellectual Privacy PDF Author: Neil Richards
Publisher: Oxford University Press
ISBN: 0199946159
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 241

Get Book Here

Book Description
Most people believe that the right to privacy is inherently at odds with the right to free speech. Courts all over the world have struggled with how to reconcile the problems of media gossip with our commitment to free and open public debate for over a century. The rise of the Internet has made this problem more urgent. We live in an age of corporate and government surveillance of our lives. And our free speech culture has created an anything-goes environment on the web, where offensive and hurtful speech about others is rife. How should we think about the problems of privacy and free speech? In Intellectual Privacy, Neil Richards offers a different solution, one that ensures that our ideas and values keep pace with our technologies. Because of the importance of free speech to free and open societies, he argues that when privacy and free speech truly conflict, free speech should almost always win. Only when disclosures of truly horrible information are made (such as sex tapes) should privacy be able to trump our commitment to free expression. But in sharp contrast to conventional wisdom, Richards argues that speech and privacy are only rarely in conflict. America's obsession with celebrity culture has blinded us to more important aspects of how privacy and speech fit together. Celebrity gossip might be a price we pay for a free press, but the privacy of ordinary people need not be. True invasions of privacy like peeping toms or electronic surveillance will rarely merit protection as free speech. And critically, Richards shows how most of the law we enact to protect online privacy pose no serious burden to public debate, and how protecting the privacy of our data is not censorship. More fundamentally, Richards shows how privacy and free speech are often essential to each other. He explains the importance of 'intellectual privacy,' protection from surveillance or interference when we are engaged in the processes of generating ideas - thinking, reading, and speaking with confidantes before our ideas are ready for public consumption. In our digital age, in which we increasingly communicate, read, and think with the help of technologies that track us, increased protection for intellectual privacy has become an imperative. What we must do, then, is to worry less about barring tabloid gossip, and worry much more about corporate and government surveillance into the minds, conversations, reading habits, and political beliefs of ordinary people. A timely and provocative book on a subject that affects us all, Intellectual Privacy will radically reshape the debate about privacy and free speech in our digital age.