Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1893-05-20

/ money which now and
then finds its wav into
such receptacles. Quite often considerable
| sums have been discovered in this manner
on one occasion a package of signed warrants
from the Office of the first controller, represent
! ing many thousands OF dollars, was come across
among the refuse. Where such enormous
Quantities OF cash in different shapes are
handled daily 1t Is not surprising that some OF it
should be lost and should eventually reach the
place OF deposit for all waits and strays.
| IN EXPRESS WRAPPERS.
Money is most frequently found in express
wrappers which have contained sums in paper
notes and certificates sent in for redemption by
banks. The RENTER is obliged in every such
case 10 pay the charges both ways Very often
at the last moment, he will slip into the parcel
| tne amount IN change required for the return
| transportation. Az likely as not the coins drop
between the folds of the stiff brown paper en-
yelope and conceal themselves. They are no.
discovered until the wrappers carefully
torn to pieces in the waste room. In some
cases they are only disclosed by tearing off the
SEALS beneath which they have hidden them
selves away. The sealing wax is all removed
| from the scraps and burned. to get rid Of it.
Love letters written by treasury clerks Of both
sexes to one another and carelessly thrown
away not seldom afford amusement to the
| sorters
OFFICE SEEKERS CONTRIBUTIONS.
Large quantities OF what will eventually be-
como waste paper are contributed just now by
Office seekers. From ZOO to 1900 letters day
are receivedby President Cleveland and Private
| Secretary Ihurber gets about 800 per diem in
addition. Col. Crook, who has been attached
to the White House staff ever since Lincolu's
time says that the mail delivered at the Exec
utive Mansion has never before averaged one
half OF its present volume. kilograms come in
at the rate of 800 every twentv-four hours, and
OF these three-fourths are recommendations of
| candidates for government places. All OF the
letters are opened by Executive Clerk O'Brien,
except those known to be private. which are
sent to Mr.. Thurber's desk. The missives
marked private and PERSONAL are nearly
always from total strangers who want some
thing. Such communications in the ordinary
run are not referred to Mr. Thurber, but are
sent direct to the departments.
THE PRESIDENTS SPECIAL BASKET.
Only the selected letters go to Private Secre-
tary Thurber He sorts them over, picking
out those which require Mr.. Clevelands per-
| sonal attention. These are put in a special
basket by themselves and are called "Presi-
/ dents budget At night, after all other work
| is finished, the budget is gone through BY Mr.
| Cleveland and Mr.. Thurber together. Often 1t
| Is 2 a. m. before it is done with. All OF the
| communications received by mail at the White
House packed after while in wooden
| boxes and eventually they torn into pieces
and burned. This rule does. not apply to mis-
| sives which are really important. They are
kept on file permanently. There is at the Ex-
ecutiye Mansion so-called eccentric fle," on
! which all letters from palpable cranks are put.
| Most of these contain threats and warnings.
| This file has been kept ever since the episode
| OF Guitsnu, who wrote many such notes before
| he shot President Carried. An entirely sane
office hunter the other day sent "a lock Of his
own fiery red hair with his application for the
| place. saying that he understood that character
could be OWNED by persons capillary traits.
STATE DEPARTMENT SECRETS.
The Department Of State always has a good
many secrets to keep. To sell its torn-up and
waste bits of paper to the junk dealer without
discrimination would not do at all. Scraps
might be put together so to reveal most
| esoterlc points in the policy OF the administra-
ton. Accordingly. all writings of private
nature that are to be DESTROYED are burned in
| the open fireplace in Secretary Gresham's own
room. His confidential messenger supsrintends
the operation. The material thus disposed of
Is mostly notes and official memoranda repro
senting important diplomatic and other docu-
ments in the preliminary stages of their com.
position. All other refuse scraps are put into
the furnace in the basement because nobody
has been found to buy the stuff. The Navy
Department has trouble to sell its waste paper
| Ut 40 ceUtS per iUD POUNDS. Inc war De-
partment get 90 cents per 100 pounds. because
much of Its refuse paper is in the shape of trim
mings from the Office of records The "cards''
of heavy paper used for inscribing the record,
of soldiers are Of the finest linen substance.
The sheets from which thev arc cut come hall
an inch bigger each way than ia wanted, sc
that they may be trimmed perfectly square for
convenience in filing.
| WASTE PAPER AT THE CAPITOL.
The two branches Of the national legislature
| throw away an immense quantity of paper
During a short session the doorkeeper of the
House sells $500 worth of it, and the amount is
doubled in the long session. From this end of
the Capitol 100, 900 pounds Of refuse bills and
laws are carried away to the junk shops during
each Congress. They fetch from 81. % to : |. 40
per 100 pounds. All such documents are kept
for one year in the document room and are
then disposed of. The Senate wastes about
one-quarter as many bills and laws, which are
sold in the same way by the sergeant alarms.
| Until very recently the marketmen in Washing
ton used to utilize congressional bills exclu-
| sively for the purpose Of wrapping butter.
They cost almost nothing; the paper was
smooth and good, and there was less objection
to 1t than to any other printed paper, because
the printing was only on one side and the lines
were far apart. Besides, people were inter-
ested to read on their pats of butter at break
fast sometimes fragments of speeches which
lad been made by able statesmen. One clever
newspaper correspondent writes all of his dis
patches on the blank back pages OF Senate and
House bills
There was a junk dealer in Washington a few
years ago who used to buy great Quantities OF
valuable public documents from Congressman
But he conducted his business with such dis
cretion that nobody could trip him up. For
example, he would go TO a Representative and
make him an otter for his quota Of this or tina
government publication which might happen to
be worth good price in the open market He
did not offer TO purchase the books; that was
not his style of doing things. In an insinuatinc
manner he would say: ~ would like to borry
these books of you. You cnn borry $40 of me
at the same time"
AN INVESTIGATION sUMMARILY STOPPED.
By this method OF reciprocal loans the
dealer got possession of many thousands OF
volumes which were printed for the purpose OF
being distributed gratis among anxious con.
s,ituents. At length he was formally investi.
gated by congressional committee He re.
fused to talk. bat, being buliyragged to con.
siderable extent. he finally declared that since
it was insisted on he would speak without re.
serve. From inside pocket he drew out n
memorandum book, from which he proceeded
to read. This book contained brief notes of
his transactions with Congressman for some
years back The first entry related to a small
private deal with the chairman of the inyesti-
eating committee. The latter tried to stop
him. whereupon he asked for protection The
chairman moved that the committee adjourn.