The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1904-06-06
UNCLE ssials CIGARS,
Plight OF Man Who Tried TO Cat
the Best OF tie Customs.

b34NL- esffiti 2 AliS1ffftso,
Plight OF Man Who Tried to Get
the Best OF the Customs.
The customs regulations permit a
person 10 bring in for his own cor.
sumption 30 cigars or 800 cigarettes.
! the ruling OF the department belns
that for customs purposes fifty cigars
equal thar many cigarettes. Travellers
are always arriving who do not know
the regulations or who try 10 erade
them. Nine times out of ten the tray.
eler at once wants 10 make It a per-
sonal matter with the inspector and
nets as II he thought thrashing the Of
ticiaI would get his cigars In free. Then
he eools down a little and offers to pay
duty on all over fifty and take them
all There he strikes new cause Of
rage The smallest number Of cigars
that can lie imported is 1900. All un.
der that and over fifty are seized. The
Inspector endeavors TO explain that he
Gid net make the law and is responsi.
bic only for its execution as he finds It.
but that seldom works, and the tray.
eler gees away breathing ire and mad
with desire for vengeance.
A man came In from Havana recent.
" with box of cigars out Of which
he hid smoked fifteen. There We're
eighty-Hve left. The inspector who ex-
I,amined his baggage told him he could
Lave only fifty. The man declared that
it was an outrage and intimuted that
he believed IT to be perpetrated for the
Inspectors personal amusement.
"Who gets the restf" he demanded.
They are seized for the government"
was The reply.
Thereupon it was evident to the man
that the outrage was for the benefit as
well as the amusement Of the inspect
or.
4 don't suppose you smoker he
snsered.
Not on duty" suavely replied the
Weitt You won't smoke these off
doE Tried the man and began to
"Hold on" said the inspector. you
mustn't do that"
"Why notT' demanded the man.
They are my CIGARS
NO, they are not" replied the in.
spector ''They belong to the govern
mentr
No words would at that situation,
and the man went away. A little
later he charged into the Office of the
law division, prepared TO tear down
the custom house. He wanted to
know, and lie wanted his information
quickly.
Not my cigars, Ell? Well, they
hadn't been brought In yet"
''oh, yes, they had. They were con
siderably inside the three mile limit
when YOU had them on the pier
A little argument cooled him off, and
he finally said:
well, III take my fifty. and you can
have the rest"
You haven't got fifty now" said she
official
Haven't got Gftyg" he screamed.
''I'd like TO know why / haven't.
You've said all along l could have
ffty."
"Ycs, but you broke them up
Il didn't do any such thing. i broke
up The extra thirty-fiyer'
"oh. no. Those are Uncle Sans
You We're breaking up your own. Bat
don't think you destroyed them all.
There nrn ahout fffaan stii laft fo,.
you
And be had to do the best he could
to seem content with fifteen. All of
which shows again how foolish it is
TO kick against the pricks Most men
do It, however, and sometimes they
beat Uncle sam out OF his cigars.
There have been instances where men
so situated pitched the whole supply
overheard in their rage.-Century.