The Lee County journal. (Leesburg, Ga.) 1904-19??, 1907-05-03

away $4,000 worth of disable stuff daily
or nearly 100000 worth year; but
not dollar of 1t is lost. No city of
its size in the world has so thorough
a salvage system
A few years ago, when the, munich
pality first adopted an ordinance re-
curing the use of metal garbage recep-
tacles, the unofficial salvage corps rose
in revolt Then the discovery was
made than 10000 citizens depended for
their livelihood upon the refuse of the
city.
Their rights were recognized 1t was
arranged that the chiffoniers. as they
call the people who dig through the
receptacles, should do so indoors in
the early mornings before the city
wagons came around to collect the
garbage.
They forthwith divided the field
among themselves. Each one took pos
session of a territory. There is no law
covering the matter, but the territories
came to be regarded as vested rights
They are sold nowadays as doctor
sells his practice, and they fetch from
$40 to perhaps $50, depending on the
wealth of the quarter. OF course they
are not freeholds Rent or commits
sion is paid in one way or another.
In poor neighborhoods the chiffonier
puts the garbage cans out on the side
walk, thus saving the concierge from
having to get out of bed in the chilly
dawn to do So In houses where the
pickings are good few francs a week
may have to be paid here and there to
hold the circuit
The chiffonier of today has cart
and sometimes a bony nag to draw it.
Sometimes he and his wife draw it
or maybe the wife alone He has be-
sides howell and a yard somewhere
out in the grimiest suburbs. This is
where he asserts his gatherings in the
forenoon, for sale later in the day to
the wholesalers
First Of all he sets aside scraps of
food for his own use. TO magazine
writer who showed disgust at this
one Of them struck back.
Don't curl your lips said he, you
don't know what you eat sometimes
yourself. See these crusts? They were
a heap of bread crusts in all stages Of
diplapidation. These are crusts that
my horse won't eat sell them to
the pork dealers at half a cent pound.
They are roasted in coffee rooster,
graduated in a mill and then used
to sprinkle on the top of hams, where
they are baked into a nice brown crust.
THE pork man sells the black dust
that falls from the mill to the charcoal
tooth gowder makers and the coffee
grinders, or you may get it as prime
chicory."
There was also a great vessel full Of
coffee grounds.
Il have a customer" said the chiffon
Ter, who dries them and regrinds them
with percent Of fresh coffee, some
Drowned rye and little burned sugar.
They they're ready for packing in car
tons for retail sale They make ex-
cellent coffee"
In another bag there was collec-
ton of heads Of game birds, pheasants,
partridges pigeons, reed, birds.
q sell them at three cents each to
second class restaurants" was the ex-
PLANTATION when you get salmi Of
duck or a game pie goodness knows
what odds and ends it is made Of,
but it viii be served with one or two
of my fgureheads decorating the dish
as an evidence OF good faith"
One Of the most profitable species
Of refuse is old shoes; nothing in them
goes to waste There are wholesalers
who specialize in them
They are carefully dissected, Wood
en- heels are sold for kindling. Soles
are carefully detached from uppers and
trimmed into new soles A mans can
be cut down to woman's size, wo-
mans to a chid's.
Some manufacturers make a speciality
of these reservations. A new slab of
leather makes them look all right out
side, thin lining is pasted over them
inside. The manufactures pay the
wholesalers a cent each for such soles.
There are sixty wholesalers engaged in
this trade; they employ from ten to a
dozen men each at 81 day They
produce, it is estimated 100000 soles
a year
The shoes are entirely taken apart.
The nails, heeltaps and eyelets, if any,
are allowed to fall on the floor When
they are swept up the iron is separat-
ed simply by applying strong magnets
to the mass 1t is sent to one smelter
as scrap and the brass goes to another
The useless leather scraps are sold
to chemical work at Ivry where they
are converted into fertilizers. SO