Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1888-01-17
NEVER TO SPEND A DIME.
The Hard Time Wen who Make thi
Promise have 10 Keep il.

From the Pittsburg Dispatch.
"For heavens sake, man. give me nckels instead
OF those dimes, won't your" The wall was plain
tive one and the look OF anxious that careened
mournfully over the youthful speakers face would
almost have been sufficient TO melt the heart OF
baggage smasher or a Pullman car porter. When
twas turned with all its fusing power on the
countenance OF the young man who does business
at the Union depot news stand 1t broke him up
completely.
"Oh, you're another victim Of the 1O-cent racket,
are youT" he said. sympathetically, as he showed
the four dimes which he had laid on the counter in
change back into the drawer and handed out
mans face beamed with joy. 81 wo uld have been
busted II you hadn't done that" he exclaimed, as
he pocKeted his change and walked away.
"What was the matter with htm?' an aStOniShed
reporter inquired.
"Matter? Oh, he's promised somebody, his sister
or his mother, or probably his sweetheart to save
every dime that comes into his possession" kindly
explained the news man.
"You never heard OF that racket before?" he con-
tlnued inqulrtngly. swell, that's funny. Don't
you know that the practice OF never spending
dime Is growing so fast that 1t threatens to cause
an actual scarcity OF the coin. A number OF young
men know are doing II from choice They take
ali the dimes you Oner them and religiouSly hide
them away in side pocket, from where they
transfer them to safe little box that is tightly
locked. But the ma orty OF the boys do II because
Ia weak moment they were tempted to pledge
themselves to try the scheme for six months or a
duce that class OF youthful savers to accept a
dime In change. In the first place they won't take
The change In their hands. They make you lay 1t
down on the counter Then Il there is a dime
among IL they ask to have IL changed. They
daren't touch 1t, you see, else they would have 10
keep IT, I'll guarantee that citizen who has Just
left here hasn't had dime in his pocket for d
month.
But the boys who do save up dimes ia earnest
find 1t a mighty rapid way OF laying up wealth.
nave friend who started the scheme six months
ago. lie Is clerk, getting small salary, and he
had already declared he couldn't possibly save
anything. Last week, when he opened his little
Don, he round he had accumulated trii1e over S4S
There were $50 Dimes and he had never missed
one OF them. IL takes a lot OF watching at first
though, tell you. couple or days ago d business
picked up the evening papers. throwing down a
dime In payment. was about TO put it in the
drawer, when lie grabbed 1t and showed 1t down In
MS vest pocket as though 1t were sacred to
the memory OF his mOther-in-law or his
great aunt Then he SkirmiShed through his
pockets for change. He had four dimes, but that
was everything he had smaller than s. bill. He
dlines go he let me change the bill. Another poor
1eiloW who runs a ribbon counter down street has
TO deny himself p perS and like luXurieS all this
week because, when he opened his salary envelope
last Saturday, he found S4.5O OF his weekly sill
pend In dimes 1t almost broke his heart but be
stuck TO his pledge and dropped the $3.50 in his
little box.
"sone people who can't afford to save dimes
save nlckeiS and pennies, and others who are more
prosperous put away all their quarters or half
dollars. Its great scheme, anu 1t is spreading
all over the country. IL the mint don't soon turn
out few train loads OF small coins there won't be
any In circulation"