Elmore bulletin. [volume] (Rocky Bar, Idaho) 1889-1906, 1891-05-23
UNCLAIMED AND LOST.
ARTICLES THAT ARE DEPOSITED AND
NEVER CALLED ron.

Rank Cashiers Chat About Property
That Is Placed Ia Charge Of fnsiita-
tisns aud Never Reclaimed - unre-
deemed Pledges THAT Make Sad stories
Speaking 10 an old bank cashier the
other day. | asked him whether there
was not an enormous amount OF property
lying unclaimed IN hank cellars and in
safe deposit vaults.
"A very large amount" said N ''but
not nearly rs much rs sons people i'm
agine. When property Is psaced IN
charge Of bank or a safe de isosit com
pany 1t Ii generally put there By people
OF pretty strict business habits. and a
careful record is kept. not only by the
deposition, but also 10y the parties into
whose charge it is given. That reduces
the chance Of yalIlabIes being overlooked,
but still a very large quantity does re-
main unclaimed. All the custodians OF
such property can do Is TO preserve II in
tact and hope for its redemption in the
course of time"
lis there limit TO such timer |
asked.
Legally there may be. but am not
prepared to say what il is. since every
case has to be settled upon its own mer-
its. Sometimes the boxes which have
been regarded for long time as contain
ing valuables turn out to be mere collec-
| tons Of rubbish, and the wonder l. why
they were ever preserved. But bank
official never expresses surprise. because
he meets so many peculiar people and
his whole time Is occupied in keeping
things straight.
But surely list Is kept Of the con
tents OF packages left on deposity
when desired, yes; but when n sealed
parcel or box is deposited the bank does
exactly what common carriers do. signs
Contents unknown, and unknown they
remain. whether delivered 10 the owner
or awaiting reclamation OF course
every place OF deposit has stories TO tel!
about mysterious boxes, strange parcels
and odd packages which have been lying
IN secure corners of their strong rooms
for years. but am inclined To think that
as far as banks and safe deposit com
panies are concerned, the vast bulk of
such property ID redeemed soon or later.
Lawyers nowadays are very apt to dig
up every possible form of claim to valu-
ables of any description in the hands of
public bodies. and very faint clew is
sufficient To start them OFF upon sue
cessful hunt. They often come upon rich
possessions while searching for wills,
and the first places, after counsel's offices.
they start for. are the banks and safe de-
posits.
The desire To hoard in some form or an.
other is very widespread one, and every
one could enumerate among friends and
acquaintance considerable number in
whom the boarding spirit is distinguish.
able. The difficulty Of accommodating is
as often rewarded by loss as by posses
sion. but the knowledge of that fact does
not diminish the desire to hoard. In the
case of a miser. TO whose heir the accu.
mulated property goes. the very opposite
motives are found to exist The miser
shoulders at the idea of his coveted pos
sessions falling into other hands than his
own, even when those hands are merely
bundle Of dry bones, while the heir is
all eagerness to clutch the property in
order to dispcrse it.
Misery habits If they ever prove to be
hereditary, only become fully developed
with age and certain kind OF expert.
ence, although sort of avariciousness
may always be traced in the progeny of
one who has boarded Ii does not. al.
ways take the form Of grasping for
wealth, hut, as often as not, takes shane
in desire for superiority Of position,
power of dictation or uncommon popu-
larify