Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1896-07-10
HAD-M0NRY TOWASH.
CURRENCY THAT SOMETIMES RE-
QuiREs AN AMMONIA BATH.

winch Incl01eo IN Ancfeoo0 OF S1kofys
The Experience Of . Young Actor and
His Brilliant wife.
The fair metropolitan cashier has add.
ed q new factor to her growing valua.
ton which will not prove SO desirable
vile in the eyes of her employer as the
honesty and efficiency which have won
for her almost a monopoly in the bust
ness 1t is the result Of the microbe
craze, and is nothing less than washing
all the money she handles and charging
her employer overtime too.
The discOverer of this new way to en-
nance her usefulness and cost is Annie
Nesmyth, the money taker of big down
town hotel. Miss Nesmyth serves at
night mostly, and, while less money
| comes in then than in the day, she is
generally kept busy enough. The money
| is often very dirty and to the last degree
repulsive to handle. Now, the cashier is
a trained nurse resting" from her ar
| duous professional labors. After sick
spell from handling the soiled currency
che concluded to resign. She was per-
shaded not to by an increase of salary
and permission to wash the money. So
| every night sees q soup plate of am
monia water ut her elbow, into which
each note. as it arrives, is dropped. 1t
gets a quick bath and is then laid out on
piece of flannel to dry as tenderly as if
it We're her best piece Of jewelry. The
water has to be changed two or three
times i'll a night.
The cashier recently had an offer of
another similar job. Being asked what
salary she wanted, she mentioned her
usual figure, with the proviso that it
must be so much more "if there money
| to wash"
Money to wash" said the aston
ished would be employer. ''Why, l
haven't enough for my hides (he is q
leather and taliow dealer), much less to
wash. ~
'YCu sea-" she said calmly, "your
business is dirty, and it's likely the
money will be. / won't wash another
fellows money in ammonia water-it's
bad for the hands and head-without a
consideration in my salary. Different if
it were my money!! She says she's
passing the tip along" and soon all
merchants in a business that calls for
an unusual fOrtitude i'll the olfactOry
and perceptiye nerves will have to pay
extra salaries if they wish to retain
steady and efficient help.
A money washing episode which con-
verted Charlie Bigelow, the actor, and
his wife to belief in banks is worth
recording. By dint of great saving and
denial the young couple got together
$500 in the first year Of their marriage.
The money was kept in a channels bag,
which the wife strung around her waist
under her corset, and as the fund was a
great secret which both tried hard to
forget, SO that the we'll known borrow
ing propensities of their profession
might not be excited, it was never
touched or even looked at for months.
But a run of bad luck finally drove the
young folks to draw ON the chamois
bag, when to their intense dismay il
was found the money had become per-
fectiy illegible. One by one the eight
500 bills were laid on the bed, all III
the same condition of greasy, uniform
. black green no color. Husband and wife
took turns at trying to restore the at.
tractiye greenness Of the filthy Iucre, but
: i'll vain. The young wife wept; the saw
/, ing husband raved. Then together they
: went to the bank which had given then
the bills. The bank refused to recognize
!. the money, nor could Manager Baker,
II Endorsement make the cashier change
his mind. The manager then took a 81
!, bill of their hands for friendships SAKE
Il and got a managerial friend to do like
2 wise, trusting to their prominence t,
. pass the notes. That was doing a goot
= bit for the young folks. who had sub
mitted to being called stingy many
time to gather the fund together.
The actor then left his wife at hom
weeping over the remaining 5000. Will
he went down ON the Rialto to sell it t.
any speculator at 30 cents for the dollar
But the wife was mo SLOUGH" at expe
dients. As soon as he was gone she drie'
her tears and declared to the girl that
as the money was no good anyway, the
would just experiment with it. The cir
made strong ammonia water, and til
mistress took some washing soap an
soaked and soaped and washed those si
bills as industriously behind locke
uUuIS iS ~ eAC NcIc pcIpSlIatluS III
regular handkerchief and hose wash il
q fourth story room of hotel wher
Laundry work in the rooms was for
hidden. Patience was rewarded. Rid @
their Shiny coating. the half dozen bill
at last shone feebly ont in wan sort Q
alive greenness, touched up with brown
Us if under the rays of a dying sunse,
They looked like autumn leaves after
big gale.
When her husband came home wit
the news that he had sold our bills at 2
'e cents ON the dollar, and would thro,
the other two in for fear the Speculation
an actor friend, woald be bitten to
badly, she said radiantly. Guess not,
and led himeto the table where the 81
- faded, wishy washy governmental prom
= ises lay still damp. He rushed ont an
got the others from his CONSIDERS an
submitted them to the same restoratiy
II Process. The bank took the whole sigl
as the young couples first deposit.-Ne'