The Anaconda standard. [volume] (Anaconda, Mont.) 1889-1970, 1899-03-10

money is all gone he'll fall back on the
cheapest alcohol he can buy at hard-
ware store, dilute it with water, and
shift along with that until his next
pension check arrives. When he IS
spending his money he'll inNariable
drink to the health of Phil Sheridan,
because the generals picture was on
his pension check. I know one poor
fellow who has better judgment. He
cashes his pension check. and then
| goes to a scent eating house and pays
over SIS cash in advance TO assure him
| self of food for as many weeks The
remainder of his pension money he'll
blow in treating all the children on the
block to candy. There are three old
veterans who are about as selfish as
any men l know. They have resolved
never to spend a dollar of their pen
| sion money on any one else. They pay
| their own bills, sit together in the the
| ater drink good wines, smoke good
cigars, eat the best meals they can
agree on, and in that way they keep
| it up until every cent is gone. Then
| they'll separate, go about their bust
| ness, and never see each other until
| the next pension payment, when they'll
come together again for another jolly
but selfish time. They fought in the
same battery, all are widowers with
something laid by to keep them. and
nav dS ecu iOStlHti u SllGlu lItit
Sans money in the way they do.
Each makes out a programme, and
when they meet they compare notes
and adopt the best. l know a colored
man who spends every dollar of pen
sion money he draws on clothes. He
was captains cook and was wound
ed characteristics. He's a cook yet.
and earns fair wages in a restaurant or
coffee place, but he makes it rule
to buy nothing but clothes with his
pension check He has a great .ayGut
| of neckties, collars and cuffs. He SaS
| a weakness for them, and his pink silk
shirts at colored cake walks are quite
| familiar, I am told.
Another man draws his pension mon
| ey. gets bundle of new underwear
| cheap clothes, shoes. neckt:e and hat.
and starts for the nearest BARRIERS for
hair cut and shave. Then he'll go to one
of the cheap Turkish bath houses and
take bath He'll come out brand new.
and every dollar that he has remaining
he'll blow in at some big hotel bar up
town to hear the brokers and money
men talk of the outlook in Wall street.
| He's money king with the rest of
| them, and he'll swell it fairly we'll. and
| in day or two 20 broke again. He
| has a weakness for financial matters /
| have yet to know the first poor devil
| who skyrockets his pension money in
| gambling. My experience is that al
| most all the old soldiers want to be sure
| of receiving something substantial for
| their money.
'Of course, the general rule is that
pension money is put to good use in
| thousand different ways. l am only tell
| ing you of some of the Oddities Why
| / know a pensioner whose weakness
runs to horseback riding, and a GER
| tain liveryman gets nearly every dollar
| for horse hire. He's the happiest man
| on earth when in the saddle, pays cash,
and, strange to say, never in all his
years has ever asked credit for a single
| ride. ! am sure the liveryman would
| readily allow him a horse for nothing
| once in a while, but the old sold 'er
would rather walk for his exercise. He
| is now 55 years of age, gets SIS a month
| pension, | think and rides very we'll.
There is not a man in all my acquaint
ance that | assist more cheerfully than
a rounder over in Jersey. He has a
mother in the coal regions. Every time
| he draws his pension money he'll go
| and buy a box of stockings, gloves,
| ginghams, handkerchiefs. dress goods
and shoes, and off it goes to the good
old mother. who imagines her boy is
doing so well that he doesn't need his
| pension money. But he does, for half
the time he's hungry and tattered. But
he says, She nursed me back to life
| NitH Sol bath llbUl TIE dl1ilS, dIu
she can have all that pension graft
He prefers to buy things and takes a
world of pleasure in selecting the ar
ticles. He knows his sister gives the
old lady good home, which he has not
seen, however, for 10 years. He says
he'll get there next summer. if he can
make stake, and surprise them. 1
promised to help him. Some time ago
we got an old pensioner job as assist
ant fireman in one of the public build
ings. He's a great old cooky in his way.
Why, he won't work a stroke when he
gets his pension, but, summer or Win
ter, he'll spend every dollar going fish
ing. And he's like the farmers wife
that MIXED Is cows every day and new
err tasted milk. He never eats fish.
Numbers of pensioners I know who
never have a dollar and do not know
the worth of one. They are poor fell
| lows who loaf around and pick up
precarious living in odd places, and
| when they get their pension money live
high, treat everybody in sight feed the
| gang and shoot UP every penny before
| morning. I was told of a pensioner
| who is fairly well off and donates every
dollar he receives as pension to the
| church. He wouldn't spend cent of
| it.
mo; 7 never heard of any one return
| ing his pension money to the govern
ment. l did hear of slight case of
conscience money, but l cannot vouch
| for it. One poor fellow who is blind
has standing order for all new army
| or patriotic music that comes out to
| be sent to him. Over in Pennsylvania
| there is pensioner who is crazy only
| in the pension season. When he draws
| his money he'll decorate himself with
| all the feathers from old millinery and
the barnyard, ribbons and rags and
h., % md n q
streets giving small change to the
school children until every dollar is
| gone. Then he'll turn to his work as
| if nothing had happened. Nothing is
! said about it because he is harmless.
An examiner some time ago told me of
a man who spends all his pension on
| his cemetery lot.'-New York Sun.
Suicide by Freezing.
A Denver dispatch tells of the sensa-
! tional suicide of Charles H. Winslow
| newspaper man well known by politicians