Port Tobacco times, and Charles County advertiser., 1889-07-19
A MOST REMARKABLE MEMORY.
Nicholas Hoffman Handles 500 Hats . Day
Without Making = Mistake.

A MOST REMARKABLE MEMORY.
Nicholas Hoffman Handles 500 Hats Day
Without Making = Mistake.
There is famous young man at the
Hoffman House. and his name is HOtf-
man, says the New York Sun. This
is. however. only coincidence. for he
is not named after the house and the
house is not named after him. His
full name is Nicholas Hoffman. He is
for the past three years taking charge
of the hats of men who pass into the
dining-room. He is tall, sprightly.
soft-voiced Young fellow, and the re-
markable facility that lie has acquired
in disposing Of mems hats has made
him the object of much curiosity among
Hoffman. House guests. At a moderate
estimate he handles about 500 hats a
day without checks. and he has not
made mistake in two years. He has
been four years at this particular
work. having been employed at the
same business one year in Delmonico's.
His fame AS a hat handler has spread
so far that he has had several offers to
60 to summer hotels for the purpose of
handling hatSe
What is tks first thing You notice
about Il man whose hat you have to
put away?" he was asked the other
day.
..First his face. l look at him full
in the face. so that shall know him
again"
How do you identify him with his
hat? Do you look at the name of the
maker?"
No; that would be but a slight guide.
because most of our guests have fash
ionable hats made by . few makers.
OF course. if man has hat with any
peculiarity. if it is very old or very
new. or an odd shape. or has anything
peculiar about it. that would at once
attract my attention. The main guide
that haye is the size and shape of the
head. BY long practice can size up
y mans hat pretty quickly"
Have you no guide a. to the time .
man goes into the dining-room ss to
where to find his hat?"
"Yes. there is q general guide. l
put those that come in first in regular
order on the top rack. have four
racks, and ill in so that the last hats
go on the bottom rack. II they all came
out in the same order that they 60 in
there would be no trouble. But one
man takes half an hour and another An
hour. Sometimes return hat from
the bottom rack before the last one is
gone from the top rack"
when . man comes out OF the din
ing-room you first remember about tho
time he went IMP"
That's It, for bv that have gen.
eral idea of where to tind his hat Bus
to pick out the Hght hat is entirely an
effort of memory"
do you never use checksf"
Yes used then, - while 81
Delmonico's. aud we have them here
for strangers, who occasionall; do not
like to give UP their hats without
checks. as they ate afraid they will not
get the right hats hack again."
why not use rheckS?"
because it takes too much time.
There is no necessity for such delay.
do not make any more mistakes with
out checks than | would with them by
mistaking numbers"
"Of course you recognize the hats of
regular guests easily"
"Yes; but they are constantly chang
ing with the seasons. SO that must all
the time keep on learning new hats.
When the summer hats come in l must
begin all over again"
what hours do you work at ite"
..On. day come on at aud work
until | A. NJ. until breakfast is over.
Then go away until P. NJ. and I
work from P. NJ. To A. NJ. The
next day | work from IL A. NJ. to
p. NJ. straight. THAI brings me here
every dinner hour. | never miss din
ncr."
"Do YOU .lo thi. all alone?"
"N"; lhrre Is another boy, Alfred
Gautirr. ~ years old. He helps on
| the other Suic. aud has been three
years handling hats. E ,ch Of us knows
which hats we take, aud as he is lit
tie shorter than am it is easy for the
guests to tell which OF us took their
hats. The rule is that we both handle
hats each day without mistakes, and
the regular guests have no hesitancy
in letting us take their hats. because
they know they will get them back
when they come out. Gautier speaks
French and German. aud acts as inter-
| prefer for the house,
..Do YOU acknowledgements as we'll as
faces aud hats?"
Yes. OF course there is some trou-
ble with foreign names. but l can gen.
orally repeat it As hear it. if not cor
rectly. at least near enough to be re-
cognized."
Don't you sometimes get confus-
ed?"
mo: it won't do to get ratified. 1t is
nv business to notice hats and, men.
and do it intuitivelv. Practice alone
has made me perfect. do not know
tnat could teach anybody how TO do
it. hover got any rules of other men
who do the same business. There is .
man ut the Fifth Avenue hotel who
does the same sort of work. aud know
! do not talk over methods of taking
care of hats. begin t" look at q man
as soon AS he comes in sight. and look
ut him and his hat as long rs l can.
That fixes him and his hat in nv
mind. have got SO used to 1t that l
would rather not be bothered with
checks"
..Do you find many people curious
as to the way you do thisp"
'.Yes, t ey often question me about
it and amuse themselves by looking ut
me. Sometimes they try to puzzlt. me.
but when say mans hat is his l
know it is his. suppose have .
natural hat faculty. have not done
much else for the past four years, SO /
have got to be pretty well used to it.
If \ man wants his hat sent out to be
ironed or brushed up while he is Ut
dinner can do that. never watch
where q man goes in the dining-room
or where he comes from. depend en-.
tirely upon my recollection Of him aud