The Washington times., 1901-11-13
LIVE TOPICS ABOUT TOWN.

a crusade has been begun in Washing
ton against the Southern custom Of men
removing their hats while riding in eie
vators n there are any women passengers.
Notices have been posted in the corridors
Of several large office buildings to the
effect that good taste does not require
! gentlemen 10 remove their hats in the
presence OF ladies' who may be using the
elevator. The reason for the crusade is
said to be altogether hygienic. Physi-
clans have stated that there Is great
| danger in the custom. and that men who
| remove their hats while riding in
| dralty elevators are liable to contract
| a score Of dangerous and malignant dis
| cases. Severe colds and catarrh are the
! least of the evils with which they may
| be attacked. The notices are said to have
| had little effect so far. according to the
| elevator boys, as the average Washing
| tonian seldom fails to remove his head
| gear when In an elevator car with a lady.
a local shoe dealer has his upon a plan
| which has increased his business very
materially. and which has caused him
to obtain good patronage from the vari-
| Gus Government Departments. Some
lime ago he had clerk look s7 all the
men in the employ Of the Government
who are minus a foot or a leg. He Sc
offered to sell them single shoes for the
price Of half nair. As the men who
| had suffered the loss Of n lower limb or a
| foot had been compelled 10 purchase
| pair when wanting shoes. they found
| favor with the proposition. and have
since been patronizing the dealer. The
| latter claims that he has no trouble In
| dispOsing Of the odd shoes, as there are
| many men who wear the same sized shoe,
some OF tho Sc having 4 left foot but no
right, and others having right foot and
no left In this way nearly ell of the odd
shoes are sold at good prices. ard the
dealer is congratulating himself on his
unique idea
Lieutenant General Miles and his stan
officers are hunting for milk-white
| steed. The commander OF the army has
! decided that he must have pure white
| horse for use on public occasions, and
\ has been having q hard time getting jjtsss
| what he wants The animal must be
without SPOT. and stand sixteen hands
high. and be built like a warhorse. Gen
cral Miles has secured the regions around
the District in search of such steed. He
has ridden miles into the country on tips.
only to find that the animals in question
were not nure white. or that they had
some srot or tnat they were not high
enough, or had some other flaw. That
man who can secure for him milk white
mount which will answer all requirements
viii ingratiate himself into General Miles
affections for life.
The clerks employed in the state, Navy
and War Deparim ments have been COM
planning since the President issued the or
derprohibiting them from passing through
the White House grounds at I o'clock
every afternoon on leaving work. The
locking OF the gates compeas the clerks
To walk up TO Pennsylvania Avenue, or
to go all the way around the ellipse
This is the first Administration in recent
history wherein the clerks were barred
from passing through the White Lot. and
they are not at ali pleased with the de-
cisior.
President Cleveland used to like to
| stand in one Of the windows on the south
| side of the White House, and watch the
| daily Afternoon procession. 1t always az
! forded him much amusement ard recrea-
tion. The story is told that, one day, while
| Mr.. Cleveland was discussing matter
| with a famous foreign diplomat the two
paced the room for a time as they talked
| and finally stood in the Presidents fs-
| v0rite window. Suddenly small army
| of clerks. male and female. burst into
| view. They appeared to be going at 4
1 high rate Of speed, and swept across the
| grounds like cyclone. The diplomat
4 looked amazed for a moment. and then
What does that mean. your Excel
! leney?'
1T means. replied Mr. Cleveland. with
| out the shadow OF smile. that it is
| nearly 4 o'clock"
Tnen he drew out his watch. and showed
| it to the diplomat The hands pointed to
2:54 The reply is regarded as the best
| Joke ever utt cred by Mr. Cleveland while
I he was in the White House.
| Out of every fresh lot of silver dollars
at the United States mints half dozen
/ are sent to the Treasury TO be tested II
| they turn out to be of the requisite fine
ness and weight it is taken for granted
| that the whole issue is correct The
| manner in which the coins are tested is
| elaborate. They are first rolled out into
| fiat thin strip more than foot in
length. Then the strip is placed beneath
! a row OF punches which make holes in it
50 that after passing beneath the instrI:-
| Inent the strip looks more like sieve
| than anything else. y large number of
| a dozen or so are taken and asSayed TO
I ascertain how much silver they contain.
/ Being obtained from various parts of the
| coins they epresent fairly the average
| hEeness of the dollar throughout II the
| weight Is short, beyond a tiny fraction
the whole batch Of coins must be melted
1 and made over again. This is also done n
| case the finencss exceeds the standard
| or falls below the limit. Otherwise the
| assayer endorses the mintaSs and the
dollars are nut into circulation.