Editor's Note Mail Scare

"At the same time, we don't want people to panic," notes Director Richard Masotta, who says his operation is trying to strike a balance between caution and business as usual.

Yale and other organizations are offering seminars on how to handle mail safely and what to look for on an envelope. Red flags should go up, for instance, if there's no return address, if a package is marked "confidential" or if it carries excessive postage. State government agencies that don't receive much out-of-state mail, like the Texas Department of Health and Human Services, are watching for postmarks from other states.