AMERICAN NOTES

THE DISAPPEARING MAILBOX

RICHARD CLOUGH, BALTIMORE SUN - Like the phone booth before it, the blue
street-corner mailbox is rapidly becoming a casualty of the digital age.
As more people send e-mails and pay bills online, the decline in
first-class mail is forcing the U.S. Postal Service to remove tens of
thousands of underused mailboxes from city streets.
"People just don't write letters as often anymore," said Yvonne Yoerger,
a spokeswoman for the Postal Service. "It's not a part of our culture
anymore. . . Since 1999, the Postal Service has removed more than 42,000
collection boxes. As of last year, about 295,000 mailboxes remained in
use. Along with mailboxes, the Postal Service is facing a drop in jobs.
In the past five years, it has reduced staff through attrition by more
than 80,000 employees. The current postal work force stands at about
700,000.

http://www.baltimoresun.com/technology/bal-te.pray13oct13,0,1569415.story?track=rss


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BALTIMORE'S ARABBERS

BALTIMORE STORIES - Arabbers, also known as hucksters and entrepreneurs,
are usually black males. An African-American tradition, arabbing was one
of the few jobs that were available for African-Americans for a long
time. It is the term for horse-cart vending - a tradition that has been
halted in Philadelphia and New York City. Government officials and
animal rights activists who don't want to see horses on the city streets
have ceased arabbing in those cities.

Despite the small number, the arabbers who are active still make the
best of their jobs and take pride in what they do. The wagons are
painted bright red and yellow and the horses are adorned with "Baltimore
harnesses."

"They have special harnesses called Baltimore harnesses that are black
with gold trim and bone rings, which are white plastic rings. They also
have red tassels and red plume with bell drops," Dan Van Allen,
President of the Arabber Preservation Society said. . .

"They have hollers like most street vendors-every guy has a different
holler," Van Allen said. The hollers are actually are more like songs.
The vendors make it musical to draw attention and to help preserve their
voice. Instead of yelling all the produce they have, they make it into a
musical melody. They often advertise their produce by listing the items
in song. The songs vary from person to person, but generally list their
best produce items, especially out of season produce. . .

Often called "a market on wheels" the horse-drawn carts contain produce
items such as fruits and vegetables. The arabbers stroll through the
neighborhoods of the city providing a delivery service of produce and
other items. For most residents this is a blessing, as there are few
supermarkets located in the city. . . "They buy their produce from a
wholesale market out in Jessup and divide it amongst the arabbers," Van
Allen said. "At one time they were selling wood and ice, and they've
sold crabs and fish on the wagons. I've even seen wagons with scrap
metal," he added.

http://baltimorestories.com

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