The Mount Holly news. [volume] (Mount Holly, Burlington Co., N.J.) 1891-1942, 1900-09-18
Finders and Losers.

| treating her to pick them up, which
ever way she strolls, and little things
like horseshoes and four leaved clovers
seem to leap up in the most unlikely
places at the first sound of her step.
"Guess what l found todayW is her
regular form of greeting; so no one was
surprised when the question came that
day at Georgia's tea.
"Oh, l don't know" said Lillian in
differently. Probably a cotton hand
kerchief or somebody's other glove"
Lillian is one of the girls who couldn't
find anything if they would. Possibly
that's the reason she assumes the man.
ner of one who wouldn't if she could.
Meta gave whitening glance at the
scoffer. Then she removed her Lady
smith hat and extracted from it's crown
her lap A $50, $40 and a $40 bill
stared out.
"Counterfeitw gasped Lillian.
"No, sir. Uncle Mac says they're as
good as any ever made"
"You didn't find them, Meta; you're
joking" protested Georgia.
mo joke about it. l was walking
down Wabash avenue, and stacks Of
people were passing in both directions,
too, but suddenly there was an open
space about a yard square right in
front of me, and straight in the middle
of it lay this money, all rolled up. 1t
just seemed as though the crowd part
ed and everybody looked the other
way on purpose to let me have il"
well, neverw sang the chorus.
"What are you going to use 1t for,
MetaT somebody asked, but Lillian,
whose interest had revived wonder
fully, didn't give her time to answer.
use it forT she cried. do you
s'pose Meta would spend that money?
Think of the poor woman who lost itp
"Woman, indeedp retorted Meta.
"Uncle Mac doesn't think that. He
says there's little pocket just inside
the waist band of his trousers where
he keeps a wad of bills-whenever he
has one-and that it's the easiest thing
in the world to slip the money In back
Of the pocket instead of into it. And
asked him if that ever happened to
him. You ought to have seen how
guilty he looked when he said, Once;
but don't tell Elem That's my aunt,
you know. Well, we think-Uncle Mac
and THAT some rich club fellow lost
it and that he'd put it to some. extrava
CANT use even if he had it again."
"But / can't help thinking about
soma, v1oor old xuo 81 o1xunman who
hadn't another cent In the world"
murmured the blue eyed innocent.
"Washerwomen without another cent
are so likely to go strewing $50 rolls
aroundw said Meta.
more likely twas a schoolteacher
with her months salary. And teaching
is such nervous workw suggested Lii
ian.
"Or tagged out woman clerk" add
ed Georgia.
"Well, | wouldn't take 1t from a
woman any sooner than you would"
declared Meta. "Of course wouldn't
mind so much If it belonged to a man.
But l intend to advertise it anyway"
Certainly exclaimed Lillian, as II
she'd been thinking of that all the
time. "That's the proper thing to do"
And blue eyed innocent added, 81
should just use that money for adver-
Using every day in every paper until
there wasn't cent left"
Meta pursed her lips. "Well, I'm
taking Uncle Macs advice about this"
she said. Gle says to study the papers
day or two and see if the loser adj
vertises. Then, after that, he says to
advertise: 'Found-Sum of money, at
such a place, at such a time Not
word to give false claimant any help
In identifying the bills, you see. But
he doesn't think I'll ever find the own
er, and, say, girls, If he shouldn't turn
up, what do you say to lake trip to-
gether or some kind of a regular spree
with this money!"
II couldn't enjoy it." said the right
eous Lillian.
mot unless you gave half to hos
pital," amended another.
"Oh, / don't know" dissented Geor-
gia. II think my conscience would
take in trip to Mackinac."
Good for your replied Meta, as she
rolled up her wealth and put on her
hat. well spend it all for gum if
we want to, Georgia, and we won't
treat them, either-see if we do"
They didn't see her again for three
weeks, and then she came flying in to
luncheon at Lilian's with look in her
eyes as if she'd just fallen heir to
million In gold.
give had the loveliest experience in
| the worldv she announced. "You re-
member that money found? Well,
waited few days, as Uncle Mac said,
and no Que advertised the loss; so put
one in myself Told them to address
x, the newspaper office, you know
the way they do Next morning i
went down to get the returns. There
were nine answers, and OF all the pa
thetic things. Not one of the people
who wrote had lost their money on the
Law or at the place 1 found mine, but
| they were just as hopeful, for all that,
and they actually made me feel re-
sponsible for their losses.
"First there was a man who had
dropped a small, fiat, black book, with
a pawn ticket, a laundry bill and two
81 bills in it. And distressed over 1t!
You'd think he'd lost gold mine. And
he was so sure twas his money I'd
found-poor fellow Then a woman
poured out a whole sheetful of her
! heart, and drew a picture of the purse
! she'd lost, and told me how the money
in it belonged to her sister, who was in
the hospital and who needed it dread
fully, and how I'd be blessed forever
If only restored it. Next there was
an old man vallo had dropped two $50
bills. and he went on in shaky, feeble
hand to explain that the reason he
was carrying it was because ne
couldn't trust the banks; and then
another girl, who told about an alligat-
or skin pocketbook containing latch
key and a time pass over the Cincinna-
ii. jackson and Mackinac road. When
| showed that to Uncle Mac afterward
he said that road was a regular joke,
because it didn't run to any of the
places mentioned in its name, and he
lust shouted over the pass, because 1t
had expired Sept. 30, 1897. But 1t
wasn't funny to me. thought the girl
must be in sad way to be hanging on
to an expired pass over a road like that
for three whole years. Besides. she
mentioned in a postscript that there
was a So bill In her purse.
81 got awfully worked up over these
letters Then, suddenly, | had a bril-
liant idea. just made up my mind tc
wait a week and then, If no one claim
ed that $50, to send for all those forioln
people and pay them what they hao