The weekly intelligencer. [volume] (Lexington, Mo.) 1891-1901, 1899-07-15
DEPARTMENT STORE MoRGUEs
Packages That Are Misdirected Be-
come "Dead Goods" and Are
Held for Identification.

There Is a "morgue" in every large
store in Chicago, but not Of the ghast-
" characteristics Of the city institu-
tlon Of that name. This odd store de-
partment is given its grewsome name
because 1t is the stOrehouse for what
are called dead goods which are held
awaiting Identification.
Goods become dead" when they are
misdirected or when the addresses are
lost from the packages. 1t seems hard
to believe that people will buy goods
and, after paying hard cash for them,
give wrong addresses for their deliy-
cry, but that is what they do quite
often, aud 1t is these careless thought
less and absent-minded customers
who have made the establishments Of
"the morgue" necessary.
A few days ago visit was paid to
the "morgue" Of one Of the big stores
on State street. On the shelves was an
array OF articles that represented al
most every department OF the store.
There were dolls, washtubs, ice-cream
freezers, baseball masks, baby car
riages, clocks, brooms, and wrapped
up packages which, 1t was said, con-
tained everything from hats, dresses
and shoes to jewelry, groceries and
hairpins.
most things are brought back unde-
livered during the holidays and soon
after the LIST OF May" said the
superintendent. "0f course, during
the holidays many things are brought
back because purchasers were mis-
taken as to the addresses Of friends to
whom they were trying to send pres
ents. But some people, by some pc
culiar metaphysical slip, succeed in
giving their own address wrong.
"That sounds funny, but it's true. l
suppose they are here in the big rush
times and get so ratified In their hurry
that they don't know just what they
do say. Then, again, / presume they
sometimes humble their address so in
distinctly that the clerk misunder-
stands them and gets the address writ
ten incorrectly.
~ think that soon after the 1st
Of May we have q greater influx of
goods Ia the morgue than even during
the holidays. OF course. everybody
knows May is the popular moving
time. After II Is all over lots oe ab-
sent-ninded people who have moved
forget that they have changed ad-
dresses. They come in here, make lot
of purchases. and give their old ad-
dresses as the places for delivery
Then the next day they come back here
mad as fury because their goods were
not delivered. They cool off suddenly
and look cheap when we send down to
the morgue and bring up the packages
with the addresses they gave tagged
ON them.
Then in another way, which is no
body's fault especially, we get some OF
the morgues supply, In handling a
many hundreds Of thousands of pack
ages as we do, 1t Is no wonder that be
tween the shipping department AM
the points Of delivery numbers of ad
dress tags get knocked of. OF COURSE
when the tags are thus lost employe
are at total loss to know for wha
points the bundles were intended, 8
the packages are at once turned owe
to the morgus to be kept until the
are claimed by the right purchasers
Goods which are not perishable an
which are not claimed we keep In tn
morgue about year awaiting ldentif
cation. At the expiration OF that tim
they are turned back into the stock t
be resold. Chicago Tribune.