The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1888-09-09
THE BILL ooLLxCroEs LOT.
The Kind of Time He Sometimes Has
on His Rounds

A bill collectors lot, like policeman's. is
not always happy one. There are over a
hundred bill collectors in Savannah. The
collector, as rule, is sober patient and a
good judge of human nature. These are
essential qualifications, though some who
profess to he collectors have neither. The
'hard" debtor despises the collector. and
shuos him on all occasions He points him
out as an ofiicious and offensive parsonage,
whom decent people should frown
down. An old member of the
collectors craft said yesterday that
he had worn himself out in the role of
a collector: Pretty good pay, its true"
he said, but | never saw bill collector
yet that had accumulated anything They
are all poor. 1t is not often that good
collector ever thinks Of laying away for The
future. lie is as a rule ambitious and his
talent lies in collecting rather than in
saving.
''4ne collector" continued the retired
man, lis stranger to no kind of bills. The
furniture bills, doctor bills. grocers' bills.
liquor dealers bills, ice bills, coal bills,
tallors' bids, and dentists bills, ali find their
way to his leatt er bag and are some times
unacceptable by the creditor, who reads
the words written across the face in bold
letters, "bad eggn
The furniture dealers bill is picnic, an
all the collectors look cut for them. The
debtor cannot very well get out of paying
off these bills, and, If he refuses, the dealers
have the goods haule promptly away. The
doctors bill formerly was hard bill to
work, but of late years the collector is find
ing more trouble with other bills "
NV hat ara the hardest bills to collect
The grocer's bill, or the liquor dealers
bill. A good mtny people just refuse to
pay hquor Dlls, and some of them
nuke stout kicks against paying
70" last months groceries. The taior's bill
is pretty tough bill to collect, and few
people pay tho full amou It of dentisJ's
bill. The jewelers. are sensible people, and
don't have ul this bill business; but doa't
unders and me to pray for a discoDtinuance
of this bill service. There are some bills
that cannot be collected. Bills out of date
and season cannot @ collected Under this
head come coal bills in summer and ice bills
in winter
collectors laugh at such bills. They are
out OF the order of things, and the only re-
course the creditor has ia such q case is to
keep an eye on his debtor, and the first
horse or COW that is fou..d in hi, possession,
lay to- aud appropriate it to his own use,
That is, provided the bill is large enough to
warrant 1t. The Ia use rent collector gets
his fingers scorched u score of times before
he gets ON to tho way Of the renters. After
ne promises to meet re tor at O'clock
and upon arriving at the appointed time,
learns that the renter has made a clean
sweep Of things Two hours before, lie under
stands that appointed hours mean 'treach-
cry and instead Of being prompt, he is
prompter, and nips the rent rogue's rose in
the budn
Most bill collectors get salaries and work
for several houses Others who have no
spec al work GET 10 per cent. for collecting,
anu IN some cases. wncn the bill is excee1-
ingly doubtful, the collector gets one-half.