Operating a Post Office

Originally Aired: January 3, 1940 Lum #239, "Operating a Post Office," Lum and Abner have reluctantly shut down their unauthorized post office operation after hearing they were under investigation by government detectives. Despite telling customers to go to Grandpa Spears' official post office at Dick Furtison's store, people keep coming in for their mail. Lum tries to convince Abner that the suspicious strangers weren't really detectives and that Grandpa Spears might have just been trying to scare them off to protect his own business. However, their hasty retreat from the postal service stings a bit, especially after all the expense of building mail boxes and a proper cage with a window. Not one to give up easily, Lum announces his intention to become the legitimate postmaster by pulling some political strings. This expression baffles Abner, who thinks Lum is talking about literal strings like the ones at carnival games or dinner parties. As Lum struggles to explain the concept of political influence to his confused partner, the two attempt to finish taking inventory of their store, with Lum suggesting they inflate their counts to show bigger profits.