The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1883-12-08
Lost Bank Books.

Lost Bank Books.
A rosy-checked young woman, whose
eyes were red from crying, went into
an east side savings bank yesterday,
and, between her sobs, said to the clerk:
"Sure, I've lost it. l don't know
what to do"
"Your bank book, eh? What's the
number"
~ don't know, sir.
"When did you make your first de-
posit?"
ION the 25th of February. My
month was up on the 9th, and came
down the next day and put in 81"
'What's your name?"
"Mary O'Brien, sir"
A giant ledger was swung around on
a revolving stand. There was great
fluttering of its big leaves, and the
clerk ran his finger down long column
of names.
mo. 1882" he said. "Now tell me
the names of your mother and father,
where you were born, and your occupa-
ton"
The girl did SO, and the clerk, after
taking the number, told her to come
back in week.
"What are you going to do now?" the
reporter inquired.
Advertise for the bank book" said
the clerk. "If it doesn't turn up at the
end of week we will give the girl a
new one. The chances are about even
of the old one being returned 1t may
be rumpled up and blew around the
ctr mill ,nfnI~a1 Nv
picker, or it may be found by some per-
son who made read the advertisement of
its loss. tits ofno earthly use to anyone,
for nobody can draw the money, as we
know that the book has been lost"
"Why did you ask the young woman
the names of her parents and where she
was born?"
"Just to see if she was really the
owner of the lost bank book. When a
person opens an account with the bank,
he writes his name in that big book
near your elbow. Then we ask him
certain questions, and note the replies.
This is done as means of identifica-
ton. If the young woman who was
just in had been unable to answer the
questions | asked her l would have
known that the book was not hers"
care many bank books lost?"
"We don't average more than $50 to
200 year. Some banks lose fewer
books. Where the depositors are
mainly servant girls and young clerks
and workingmen, such as we have here,
there are more lost. 1t is amusing to
notice the way the loss affects different
people. Some come in looking as if
their best friends had died; some seem
frightened, and many are defiant, think
ing that they have committed crime,
and have got to brazen it out"
''Does the same person ever lose
more than one bank book?"
"Yes, | once knew laboring man
who lost three bank books in a wear.
He used to come in every Monday be-
tween II and o'clock and deposit SO.
He carried his bank book in his trousers
pocket doubled in the center He al
ways kept the number, so it wasn't very
difficult to give him new book. We
never advertised any of his books, be-
cause it was pretty certain that no one
would ever pick them up"
''Do the people that find bank books
ever try to draw the moneypn
"Once in a while, though 1 do not
remember of any one having done so
| lately. You see there are numerous
safeguards to prevent the wrong per-
son getting the money. Every depos-
itor is warned to report to the bank as
soon as he loses his book, and list of
lost books is kept handy for reference.
Some of the attempts are amusing.
One day colored man came in with q
bank book and wanted to close the ac-
count. He was asked to sign his
name. Unfortunately for himself he
could not write, and was detected. He
then admitted that he had found the
bank book. One day two men came in
together, and one of them deposited
$3.50. He could not write, made his
mark on the signature book and an
swered all the usual questions. 1t af-
terward appeared that this person was
the man who had accompanied the de-
positor and had stolen the bank book. "
IN. Y. San.