The Olneyville times. (Olneyville [Providence, R.I.]) 1887-1917, 1894-03-30
EXPERT IN EMBLEMS.
WISE IN TIE MATTER OF FRATER-
NIFTY PINS AND BADGES.

A Bowery Man Who Makes These Things
aFeature of His Pawnbroker's Sale Shop
and Finds Them the Most Fascinating
Incident of His Business.
On the Bowery not far from Broome
street is pawnbroker sale shop, the
proprietor of which makes a specially
IF dealing in college fraternity pins and
badges. You may examine every other
pawnshop and sale store on the Bowery
and find not more than five or six such
emblems in all Of them, but in this
shop, occupying a conspicuous position
in the show window, there is always a
velvet covered tray on which dozen or
more pins of different secret societies
are displayed. The place is getting to
be known among college men, and peo-
pie who have lost fraternity badges go
there as the first step to finding them.
Every few weeks the proprietor of the
place goes on tour of the pawnshops
looking for badges, and in his long ex-
perience he has picked up fund of in
formation about college fIaternities that
would put the average graduate to the
blush. There is not much money in that
particular branch, he says, but he has
become interested in it and made it
sort of study. Not only does he know
the emblems of every fraternity in this
part of the country, but he is perfect
encyclopedia of information regarding
their relative size, Importance and the
peculiar characteristics of each society
and of the colleges in which each has its
chapters. One would be certain that he
himself is a college man but for certain
peculiarities of speech that proclaim the
east slider and his positive assertion that
he has never been inside the doors of a
college and has never even seen any but
the local colleges from the outside.
A reporter in search of lost badge
which he thought might have found its
way, as many lost articles do, into
Bowery pawnshOp went into this store
to look over the stock of fraternity pins.
He didn't find his badge, but he found
many others. The proprietor had some
interesting things to tell about some of
his pins.
There amt many things in this line
that's fun, said he. "A man wouldn't
go into it for his health. But this secret
society pin business is mighty interest
in. OF course you understand it's only
a side lay-nOt my regular trade. How
did | get into it? Why, the funny let
ters on the pins used to catch me when
[ was on the lookout for stuff in the
hockshOps, and began pickin 'em up.
Then | got interested more by an old
gent from the University club that was
up on that line and used to tell me
things about the badges and their differ
ent organizations. He came into my
shop one day to look at a badge. That's
how | got to know him. He used to send
me books and magazine articles on fra
ternities till | got to know as much
about it as he did, and now guess they
aim many college societies in this part
of the country that don t know enough
about to surprise the members if | want
ed to tell it.
"They amt a college fraternity in
the east but what I've handled one or
more of its pins. I'm keepin tab on the
hockshops all the while, and whenever
find badge nail it. Usually get
'em cheap, for they amt any demand
for 'em to speak of. Occasionally man
brings In a pin to me, or | see one on
bum's s coat and buy it, but it's mostly
the pawnshops. How do s'pose they
get there? Well, most of 'em are lost,
think. know enough about 'em to
know that the last thing college
man'll hook is his society pin. When
they do hook 'em, though, it's down
here, and not up town, where they think
other college fellows may go in and see
'em. They get mighty little on 'em,
for the hockshop men are dead leary of
things they don't understand. Of course
the pin itself has good deal to do with
it. If it's heavily jeweled, man may
get half its value on it. Then pins that
are marked design hook we'll, because
they sell we'll. The pin of the Delta
Psis, and the star and crescent of the AL
pha Delta, and the crosses like the Alpha
Tau Omega or Delta Phi will find a
market easier than the plain monogram
pins or the diamond shaped.
Now, here's a pin," continued this
erudite student of fraternities, taking a
small, plain Psi Upsilon pin from the
case, that I've had here for Is months,
and not an offer for it. got it in a
queer way. | was in hockshop down
by Canal street chewin the rag over a
couple of badges that the proprietor
had, when in came young woman
about 26 or % maybe and pretty, too,
only she looked kind of half starved.
She unpinned the pin from her dress and
| asked:
How much will you loan me on
this?'
Her voice trembled, but she was
game and kept steady face, The man
offered her 81, and she turned to go out,
when said I'd give her So for it.
:. Il don't want to sell it, she said.
1 want to get it back some time
:" Well, III keep it six months for
you, l told her and gave her my bust
ness card. She took the money, and she
kissed the pin before she handed it TO
me. never saw her again. There's
pothin on the pin but her name"
The speak r handed the pin to the re-
porter, who looked on the back and saw
engraved the one word Lizzie. He
returned the pin to its place, and it is
probably there now if any Psi U wants
/ 10 go Bowery hunting for it.-New