Martinsburg herald. [volume] (Martinsburg, W. Va.) 1881-1920, 1900-03-24
.sICKS WITH MONEY
TOURISTS TO EUROPE MUST
HAVE A SHARP EYE.
The American Woman in Paris Writes
That England Is Bad Enough, But
Worse When You Get to Paris-The
Pad Give Eranes

back from Paris, lit is the half crown
you have to look after and the two
shilling piece There is 50 little differ
ence, you see, in appearance, at least,
though there is the difference OF SIX
pence in value The half crown Is two
shilling and six. There is cross on
one of them; but when you ARE in a
hurry who is going to stop to look for
crossesI Nobody. And that's where
they get you.
This is their little game. You lay
a half crown down on the counter and
unless you keep your finger glued to
1t, saying meantime in loud voice,
This is half crown they snatch II
before you can blink an eye and de
clare you have given them two shli-
ling piece, which naturally being two
shillings only, leaves you siXpence
short. The trick is an old one. 1t Is
played principally on Americans, those
rich Americans who come over here.
scattering their money broadcast ana
leaving the trail so difficult for us
poor creatures who have to look out
for the pennies while the pounds fly.
1T is bad enough in London, but
here in Paris you must keep your eyes
skinned all the time. The town Is
flooded with bad money. There are
bad francs and had half francs; there
are francs dated before the Republic
that are consequently no good and
there are francs dated after the Re
public that are worse. If Napoleon the
Third has a crown on the money Is all
right; if he hasn't it is all wrong.
''They nailed me, too; but not at
O'Clock in the morning. This was how
it happened You see, | spend all my
spare change and more on that kodak
of mine. 1t is strange the hold ko-
dak gets on you. Many a time | have
walked miles to save up sufficient cab
fare for a set of films. | rarely take a
cab. / go on top of those elephant
'busses, where it is cheap, or | foot
it for the sake of the kodak. | had
paid out so much money for toning
baths that | put in a mild complaint
to the girl who waited on me at the
Place Nendome.
The machine will break me,
said. This is the third time in three
weeks that | have bought toning
baths at one franc fifty the bath. At
this rate l shall shortly become
financial wreck. | wish | had never
seen the thing
aware of the fact that small for
tune had passed from my hands to
hers, she put on look that was
grieved She thought awhile, then
suggested Il remedy. There was a ton
ing bath that | could mix myself, she
said. very reasonable toning bath.
Imagine my delight. Now | could az
ford a candied pear, maybe, or one
of those little cherry pies in the win
dow of the delicatessen near the pen
sion that are worth their weight in
gold. She gave me the address of
chemist in the Rue de In Pepeniere.
That little old chemist! l went gaily
along the boulevard, buoyed up by
hope, turned the corner and entered
his shop, light of step and joyful of
heart. You see, l didn't know. He put
the gold up in n bottle about the size
of my thumbnail. the hypo in a snail
square paper, and charged me two
francs fifty. | knew about that fifty.
i expected it. Like the poor. it Is al
ways with you in Paris. just as in
England, everything is one and six,
two and six, five and six or seven and
six They couldn't take off the six if
they tried If you descend to pence it
is siXpence and three farthings. Those
farthings!
Il handed the little old wretch ten
francs in gold. He gave me a large
and festive five-franc piece with
few other francs, and | went on my
way rejoicing. Later, at the Bon
Marche, the five-franc piece was re-
jected with scorn.
=" Nest pas bon,' said the man at
the desk with a shrug that brought
IL Il II, T.
ears. Nest pas bon, said another
taking it and peering at the lady with
a mistrustful eye. A crowd gathered
The atmosphere thrilled with: Nest
pas bons' | trembled in my bottines;
for they cast suspicious glances on
me. looked around cautiously fearful
of gendarmes, and l had reason for
fear. 1t is against the law to pass bad
money in France if you get caught.
1.-The man at the desk gave me back
the money without calling the gen
darme. for which | was thankful
Hastily offering him the contents of
nv purse | retired to a quiet corner
and took a look at the five francs my
self. True 1t was bad. In fact it was
Just about as bad as it could be. The
lady was sitting down. On the way
home | counted up the cost of the
cheap tonng bath that was TO last
me foreve almost Two francs fifty
and five bad francs made seven francs
fifty. | grGaGad. But | was to groan
some more According to directions |
had filed two large bottles with wa
ter, put the precious gold into one and
the inexpensive hypo into the other.
Both had dissolved so | couldn't tell
tother from which Then l had hidden
them under the bed out of harms
way for Mademoisele, a young thing
of sixty, who keeps the pension, looks
with eyes askance upon the various
and sundry bottles containing my ton
ing baths, my developing baths and
other baths belonging to the outfit of
that kodac of mine
Upon my arrival | found that the
femme de chambre-thats what they
call the girl who prctends to clean
your room over her-had Knocked
over one of the bottles and broken it.
OF course it was the bottle of gold
on the bottom of il | found floating
three undissolved grains Seven francs