The St. Louis Republic. [volume] (St. Louis, Mo.) 1888-1919, 1901-01-27
How Articles Lost ON
Street Cars Are Returned.

WRITTEN FOR THE SUNDAY REPUBLIC.
On the second floor of a substantial brick
building standing near the center OF ST.
Louis. there are two rooms which are at
once a treasure-trove. q curiosity shop and
a miniature department store.
Here there come every day men. women
and children from every part Of the city.
with anxiety written on their faces and
eagerness s~pringing In their steps. 1t is the
lost article department Of the St Louis
Transit Company.
The walls OF the rooms are hidden by
what appears to be boxes OF like size and
shape. filled with miscellaneous articles
These boxes are built into the walls. They
are. indeed, filled with articles OF every kind
and character tongue can name. Each boz
Is labeled with the name of a division of
the Transit Company.
Stacked up in rows along these boxes
are umbrellas OF every conceivable color,
style and state of value. Piled up in heaps
upon the floor are cumbersome. heavy
things which will not go In the boxes
pieces of lumber. iron pumps, portions Of
wagons. iron letter-presses. satchels, tele-
scopes and typewriters-
The boxes on one side Of ons room have
drawers which are kept locked. They are
filed with pocketbooks. Each drawer will
contain forty or fifty purses. and there
are easily fifty of these drawers. Two thou
sand pocketbooks lost upon street cars of
the st. Louis Transit Company within thir-
ty daysl No wonder men and women for
get their souls. their honor. sometimes. their
New Years resolutions often. when they
will forget their pocketbooks in such sur
p-isingly large numbers.
ThA..
tain money. jewelry. checks. drafts. notes.
Negotiable paper. cards, addresses, notes.
love letters. memoranda-everything that
forgetful men and women put into pocket
books to lose.
Walls Piled With Boxes.
The other boxes on the walls contain mis-
cellaneous articles, In bundles, or packages
or unwrapped. There are gloves. handker-
chiefs dress goods. card cases. oyershoes.
shoes. hats. millinery. Dress suits. overalls,
packages OF writing paper. rings. brooches.
hair ornaments, bags and boxes OF candy.
groceries. notebo oks. books. lunch baskets.
eyeglasses, hammers. market baskets, pack
ages OF laundry. bottles OF medicine and 50
on. There are hundreds and hundreds Of
these articles of much and little value, all
tlcketed and tagged and indexed ard re-
corded in the lost-article departments
books.
1t is a very painstaking system that makes
the lost-articie department OF the Transit
Company the most popular and up-to-dats
feature Of the system. To illustrate:
Suppose you start downtown from your
home with a package containing a new pair
OF trousers, which the tailor has made for
you and made too short. You desire 10 take
them back TO him and have them altered.
You are not in the best OF humor In being
compelled to go to this trouble. You step
On the car without noticing whether 1t is
q Page, Delmar or Spauiding. You do not
look at the conductors sulky man never
looks his fellowman in the eye. you know
and you sit down in the first vacant seat
and throw the package dow beside YOU
The first newsboy who enters the car Is
startled by the sharp and suriy manner in
which you demand a paper.
You bury your nose in the sheet and your
troubles in the accounts OF the woes Of your
felIowman. and the first thing you know
the conductor Is helping the ladies to get
on at Broadway. You scramble out Of the
car with the rest Of the passengers and
walk hurriedly towards the Office where
you are employed OF some other place that
may not be quite fixed In your mind. When
You have gone a few blocks you remember
those trousers You are vexed. amazed. dis
ccmfted and more angry than ever. You