Southern Christian Advocate

QUERIES ANSWERED.

A correspondent in Alabama asks: "Why have we no receipts published; and why is the paper three or four days later in reaching us now?" As to the first question, we can only say that such have been the difficulties to embarrass us during this fatal summer in Charleston, that we have not been able to keep up in this department of our work. With a sick foreman, and sick compositors, etc., and the Advocate and S. S. Visitor to print, the only wonder is that our paper has been issued at all. As it is, we have been one day behind hand for some weeks past, in going to press. This will in part answer our correspondent's second question. It will account for one day of the delay in getting the Advocate; for the rest, Uncle Sam must be accountable. The delay may be in part explained by the fact, that the yellow-fever in Augusta produced such a stampede in the post office, that the P. Master was at one time deserted by all his clerks. The office there being a distributing office, from which a very large number of our papers radiated to their several destinations, they were detained there for the want of force to do all the office work. In the end they were sent to Atlanta for distribution, and many of them to reach the subscribers, had to retrace the ground passed over. We may say once for all, that our papers are folded-directed, and mailed as fast as they are printed, and if they do not reach subscribers, it is not our fault. We suffer more than any subscriber does by the irregularity of the mails. Exchanges, correspondence, communications, money,—everything, is kept away longer than it should be, and we can no more help this—a real annoyance to us—than we can accelerate the mails, which carry our paper from the office. When we are complained against we console ourselves with the idea that we are taken for a great cabinet officer—the Post Master General—whereas we are only Editor of the S. C. Advocate: the exaltation may perhaps compensate for the abuse. When we reach that exalted position our friends may be sure that the P. M. General will see to it, that the Advocate reaches the subscribers, in good time.