Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1905-09-16
Written for The Star.

Written for The star.
Romance In my days work? Well"
said TIE quiet member of the group whose
topic of conversation was the romance or
cN eryday business. II happen to be the
rnanager of the complaint department Of
mentioning the name OF one of the famous
department stores of the country. Listen
ing To and tracing down and remedyng
complaints is not popularity supposed to be
work tinged with romantic glow. How
ever, III tell you OF one or two incidents
that have befallen me in the course OF the
days grind. and from them you can judge
for yourself whether popular belief is right
not In this case.
A Strange Story.
Let me see. Before I moved here some
five years ago, l was at the head OF the
complaint department of one OF PhiladeI-
phla's large department stores. One day
there came in a woman greatly excited. and
while she lowered on the verge of collapse
she managed to make me understand that
when she paid one OF our drivers for G..
O. ID. package she handed him twenty
dollar bill. but he gave her hack change for
only ten dollars. and insisted that she had
given him a bill of that denomination.
Would 1 discharge the driver at once and
restore to her the stolen ten dollars?
i sent Tor the driver on tIlat route ana
questioned him sharply. He held stoutly to
1t that the woman had handed him ten dol
lars only.
But l tell you It was twenty dollars.
she burst out. Historically. L had only
one bill in my pocket book at the time. and
that was the twenty dollar bill l handed
you
Each was so positive the other was
wrong that | was greatly puzzled. the more
so because of the good record of the man,
who had been with us seven years and the
uEdoubted prohity of the woman. the wife
%; wel-known lawyer. Finally after
promising 10 do cVeryt hing in my power to
solve the enigma. ! got the woman started
homeward. and then / practically gave the
driver the third degree. But 1t all to
no purpose. he stuck to it that she had
given him ten dollars only.
In the face of the mans record-we keep
fall record of every employe. and ms
showed a clean bill concerning complaints
OF any kind was loath to recommend his
discharge. At the same time. by keeping
him. would put the store in the position
of doubling a customers honesty. | was
still deep in the dilemma a week after the
complaint had been made when In bounced
the woman who had made il. She was as
much excited as when she first sought me.
- oh she blurted out before 1 had been
able 10 seat her, 1 hope YOU haven't dis
charged that poor driver?
" No. | haven't l confessed
Wen. ii would have been simply awful
it you had. she went on. You see that
morning when the driver delivered the
package. / looked in my pocket book and
found only one bill there. a twenty-dollar
bill. But in the afternoon. an hour or so
before the driver came. my sister. who lives
next door ran short Of money, and came In
TO borrow ten dollars. and not finding me
in-l had stepped over 10 a neighbor s-she
hunted In my bureau drawer till she found
my pocketboGk and took out the twenty
dollar bill and put a ten-dollar bill In It's
place. And she didn't think to tell me
about It till about an hour ago, and that g
why l was positive / had given the
driver twenty dollars. for l didn't look al
the denomination when | handed 1t to him
The Strange Sequel.
That happened In Philadelphia, mind
you. some seven years ago. Shortly after
had moved to this city, a woman with a
face as red as a beet in her excitement,
Historically told me that a few hours be-
fore. when she had paid the driver for a
G. .. d. package. she had handed him a
twenty-dOllar bill. but he had given her
back change for ten dollars only insisting
that she had given him only ten dollars.
That complaint sounds familiar / said
TO myself. and then. suddenly. the Phla-
delphla incident flashed back in mind
summoned the driver He stoutiy MAIN
talHed that he had received only ten dol
lars l felt Ike rubbing my eyes when
heard the woman shout at him:
I tell you, It twenty dollars!
had only one bill in my pocket book and