Christmas Cachet

Slight, dark-haired Mrs. Juanita S. Tucker is postmistress in the tiny hamlet of Christmas, Florida. Each Christmas for the past 15 years, thousands of letters came for postmarking and she lovingly stamped each with a small green Christmas tree cachet and the legend "Glory to God in the Highest." But then the Post Office Department informed her coldly that as a postal employee, she was not allowed by regulations to place "personal or unofficial indorsements" upon mail. Mrs. Tucker was crestfallen. Last week she wrote the Tampa Daily Times:

"This courtesy was extended at my own personal expense in behalf of the P.O. Department as an expression of love and good will at Christmas time ... I certainly did not want to stop this year, the first year we are third class. I don't want the public to think that because we are third class we are not willing to give this extra service as we did when we were smaller and more insignificant.

"Thousands of people write to me every December. My greatest delight has been in filling their requests and doing little things to make them happy. I receive many heart-breaking letters at Christmas time. Our post office is not a cold business institution."

Local people had volunteered to do all the Christmas stamping themselves, but Mrs. Tucker was told that it was against the rules to turn over the letters to them. "Surely if a concession is made for any office," said Mrs. Tucker, "it should be made for Christmas ... I have again appealed to the Postmaster General to work out some compromise."

Said the Postmaster General's office: rules are rules.

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