The Opelousas courier., 1896-05-30
MONEY IN POSTAGE STAMPS.
Chicagoan Who Does a Paying Bushes
nj a Novel Kind.

MONEY IN POSTAGE STAMPS.
& Chicagoan Who Does a Paying business
Of q Novel Kind.
A wholesale brokerage in stamps has
acted 100000 a year and the business
has had a 17-years' history in Chicago
The publication of hundreds and hun
areds of papers of all sorts and circula'
ton gave birth to this absolute neces'
sity-the cashing of postage stamps III
all quantities.
Consider for a moment: In one day,
when the worlds fair picture coupon
craze was at it's cfaziest, n ef Chlca'
COS morning dailies received $500 III
postage stamps. What could be done
with them? They were not good at the
banks. The paper had no time to ped
| die them, and the cash must be realized
at once to run business or at least to
save interest.
Such a state of affairs, only OF some
what milder character, happening
beSf1y, nearly a score of years ago, came
tp the knowledge of one George II.
Owens, who was looking for something
easy. Sweeping together some bits OF
capital into a bank account, Owens
quietly circulated among the heavier
stamp receiving business concerns of
the town and bid all the way from Q5 to
81 cents on the dollar for all the odd job
lots of vault stored stamps that he could
get track of.
A. fircf tho foIinnc recount Of the
great quantities of stamps at the time
of purchase was made with the aid of
the merchant selling them. This, how
ever, proved a torment - detached,
wtinkled UP and stuck together as most
Of the big lots were. After wasting OF
much valuable time on the part of their
cashiers over what was everywhere con-
sidered ah utter nuisance. the banks.
newspaper offices and business houses
gradually shifted the count Oh him al
together-save a cursory sizing up of
the "pesky torments' as they came in.
Owens simply called around, picked
up the bundles of little government
photos, gave his check for the count in
dicated OH the bthd1e, and when he got
home, if there was a thistake, he
charged it up to the customer, and it
went as a discount on the next deal,
without a question. The same thing
ruled, after a time, in the matter of the
packages retailed. They were paid for
un}lesitatingly, and any mistake his
Customers might afterwards speak Of
finding Owens would cheetfu1ly allow.
Thus absolute confidence was estab-
lished.
Chicago mail order houses and news
paper counting room were not slow i'll
advising their other city friend of the
C!1ieasn c"re fer the stamp curse, and
thus the stamp broker was freely and
without expense advertised from Maine
to California, until after years of much
profit the "old man" retired OH his pile,
to be succeeded by his son, who in his
stock exchange Office the other day
Showed the writer an order he had just
received from all eastern brewing COM
pany for 100000 two-cent stamps
($S,0OO worthy at one pr cent. discount.
Most of the stamps handled are Ones,
twos and threes; other denominations
only as the broker has customers for
them. Great quantities Of Canadians
are t4SIfked, showing an immense
%G'' T l,''' trade for Chicago with Can
Many counting rooms in Chicago and
oven the country cash $1,000 worth of
staIYps every few days at either 90 cents
Or o5s.ents, and are glad of the chance.
kfteSteaehiha the brokers' hands
there is but one feature OF interest con
nected with the r%epacking of stamps for
retail delivery. This is absolutely won
thrfnl counting by sight that is done
by the giils Wig attend to this part of
the work.
Opening upon the table before her a.
big envelope stuffed with all sorts Of
STAMPS, as they are brought from the
merchant, the girl With ~ 5esterens
dash of her right hand sweeps the heAp
to a single stamp level; an instant, not
more, she looks at them; then one fin
ger darts through the broad layer with
evidently no more system than a streak
Of lightning, but that leaves the carpet
ST stamps locking like a eolored map Of
the tinted statek. Ahothef pass 81 two
of the infinitely dexterous fingers, and
the stamps are gone. Not 20 seconds
have elapsed.
What did she do? In that 20 seconds
she counted, serted, piled and re-
wrapped 5000 unattached, mixed7up
stamps Of three determinations: 1t was
without question the most tn6ttei5ts
feat of counting the writer wei wit
hessea-and he has seer many of the
famous United States treasury finger
counters. The counting Of the stamp
instance was done entirely with the eye
fact that only increases the mys-
terry, considering that the stamps were
MI IN a erazy-quilt tumble. - Chicago
Tribute.