Grand Rapids herald. [volume] (Grand Rapids, Mich.) 1892-1959, 1893-03-01
SALE OF OLD TRUCK
The Glib Auctioneer Disposes Of
Noodescnpt Baggage
UNCLAIMED At THE RAILWAYS
The Annual CLEARANCE sale OF the d..
l.. 4 y. and &. 3 W. NJ. Tn
identificd Packages


Tea this elegant trunk. II new. u would
cost you Ella Ii may contain articles
worth forty times that amount. VIII
some gentleman make me AZ ofers'
II was the auctioneer at No. - Mon
roe street. who was speaking. lie ~as-
selling the unclaimed baggage that tho
j.. l. Il \. and the c. & W. NJ. railroads
accumulated during the year is92-
The list comprised everything from
nursing bottle 10 Saratoga trunk.
There were umbrellas without limit.
Umbrellas with plain plebian handles
and umbrellas with pre.entious gold
mounted sticks. Umbrellas of silk and
umbrellas Of gingham. Black umbrellas
and blue umbrellas. faded umbrellas
and umbrellas Of no describabge color
under the sun.
The windows u the store were filled
full Of trunks A motley assortment of
trunks they were. too. Some OF them
booked as II they might have been tho
property OF some fair maid who had lost
her baggage on the way home from
boarding school. Some were large three
story trunks with a basement and all
the comforts Of home" Some OF them
were fine covered and some were bound
in leather. Part Of them looked as IL
they could tell unique tales Of board
bills that had never been paid.
and FOR which they had stood as a
''blun." All OF them showed the effects
IL the baggage smasher's caress. and a
few az them had 10 be bound together
with two straps and rope. They were
u nondescripr LOT OF trunks at best, but
they sized up fairly well alongside OF the
valisss There was an untold number of
theee. Most of them were brunettes
the kind that the woodsmen designate
as ''turkeys.' Occasionally a red leather
grip peered out. and looked rgther
sheepish in company with the hoi polloi;
as If il still remembered the days when
the hotel clerk thumpcd the bell and
yelled. Front. take the gentleman bag
gage TO steen hundred and seven"
The Buyers Were There
The crowd that gathered to the sale
was as unique as the stuff that was sold.
1t was even moro motley. Part Of it
was composed OF women. They had
heard something about cheap" and
bargains" and couldn'tresist the tempt
alton to drop in and take look at accu-
mulatcd mass Of unclaimed baggage.
They didn't buy much. They simply
stood around and said. "hump." when
the auctioneer began To comment upon
the virtues of an abandoned trunk or a
forsaken umbrella. All the dealers in
second hand goods IN the city were
there. They bought everything that
came their way; but the Chicago Il
West Michigan system won't declare a
dividend from tho prices they paid for
their plumber. Numerous members Of
the three ball '.profesh" were on hand.
They usually wanteda 10 per cent. dis
count Tor cash. One Of them forgot
himself and asked the cashier il he
wanted a ticket The cashier didn't
There was bald headed man with
freckled face, in the crowd. lie always
started everything at - cents. Then
he waited for somebody else to raise il
/ TO %. He would withdraw from the
fight then. His finances might have
been limited TO 1.-TWO bits" He didn't
/ say Finally he bid quarter on an an.
tiquated yalise that nobody else wanted
and the auctioneer promptly knocked i,
down 10 him. lie wasn't seen again
after that.
The auctioneer was a smooth sort II q
man. He knew more about human ma.
ture than some men do about the ten
commandments He didn't praise the
external glories Of the article in ques-
| ton. On the contrary he frequently
made depreciating remarks about it,
Then he would dilate at length upon
the probable treasures concealed within
the musty old cover. That seldom
failed 10 raise the bid. When the guile
lees minion Of the souless corporation
limited at the possibility OF trunk
containing the treasures OF the Gillette
east and the precious possessions Of the
rampant west. there was always
somebody on hand TO seize the
uncertain bait and bite even
az the ichthyasaurus Of blessed
memory is supposed TO have bitten
Nobody knows the contents OF tins
trunk. Ii may contain the fruits Of a
LIES toll and eaving. Who'll give me
the halfy" And some man that hank
cred 10 get something Tor nothing
promptly raised the hid.
Very few OF the purchasers opened
their prizes in public. One young mar
broke into a salise he had purchased
and found a pint bottle OF uncertain
whisky. lie said that wss worth twice
the cost OF the grip" and went ava,
happy.
II vas 2 o'clock at night before The
last umbrella bad been sold Tor twcnt,
cents and the sale was completed.