Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1904-02-13

THAT article In The Star about making
money at the bureau of engraving and
printing" remarked treasury man In
hotel lobby the other day, reminds me OF
funny incident that happened recently.
party in the city who is something OF
sport and who would forego chance to eat
something real good for a game to chance
a few dollars found his man and was 1ok-
ingly vlctimized. They were about to enter
a well-known cafe. when one of the men
offered to pay for the meals for the entire
party if he could not name even or odd
number for any bill of money in the crowd
Mr. Sport was Johnny-on-t he-Spot and
couldn't get William out of his wallet
quick enough for the game. Folding up the
bill so that the number was invisible. he
handed 1t for inspection to the assumed
wizard. He scrutinized 1t for a moment
and called the number even 1t was right
and he won Then another note was pro-
duced by a member of the party, on
wager of the cigars following the meal
Again did Mr. Sport fall an easy victim.
After being caught for a few rounds Of
that which exhilarates as we'll as inebriates.
the man who was on proceeded to wise
up Mr.. E-Z Mark. He explained as fol-
lows: All paper money carries either an
ode or even number. and on the outer right
hand edge of bill you will find letter.
the letter is "A" or CO.. the number on the
bill will surely be one ending with an odd
number, and if the letter is b or ID"
the number of the bill will end with a
even" figure These are characteristic
marks of the printing bureau, and, while
apparently insignificant have an important
bearing in the life of the bill and its Sc
curity against counterfeit.
A correspondent of the Department of
Agriculture recently sent letter to the
department in which he attempted to give
his reasons for not having sent III his
monthly grain statement. The letter caused
the official some little effort to determine
jus. what was meant by the writer. The
following is exact copy of what the
farmer wrote: My neglect in the business
caused by misfortune and some pleas
ure My step-daughter taken typhored fe-
Yer in September and liked to have died.
ON the 3 of December was marrude to my
second wife on the 8 of same month my son
came home with same complaint and Amt
able to set up yet though l will continue
the work - soon es We get STRAIT. Excuse
letter as [ have no paper hoping this may
he satisfaction to the department L remain
ever -"
Ibid his son get married or did he have
the typhoid fever?' inquired an official af-
ter reading the letter.
Many lawyers and others who have bust
ness about the vicinity OF the city hall have
watched with interest the conduct of Will
lam Nelson in feeding the sparrows every
day during the prolonged spell of cold
wee Their Every morning shortly after 10 4
O'Clock h. is 10 be seen taking a quantity
of bread and putting it near the tree on
the curb line Again in the afternoon an
other meal is put there for the birds He
has not missed a day feeding the birds
sine the first fall of snow this winter.
1T is not because / love the sparrows
that feed them" he said to an Evening
Sta reporter this morning when emptying
his basket of the broken bread but be-
cause l hate to see the little things suffer
for want of food.
'ln the old country said the elderly
man. the sparrows are very destructive
and at times it Is necessary to employ peo-
pie to keep them out of the grain fieI Is
DO you suppose the same birds come
every day. asked the reporter
y have doubt of it," was his re-
sponse. but there is no way of telling The
birds come every morning about IL o'clock
and the family seems to get larger each
day. Big pieces of bread are carried to the
caves OF houses by the little birds and it is
a common thing to see them engage in
struggles for the big pieces
Two loaves of bread are used every day
in the feeding Of birds.
The late Judge Humphreys of our Dis
trict Supreme Court" says an old time
lawyer when he held a term of our Grim
ina Court near thirty years ago, struck
CONSERVATION among the prisoners brought
before him. The judges previous expert
ence had been in the south, and it was a
new thing to such numbers of criminals
as were brought before him. When he took
his seat on the criminal bench there was a