The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1907-06-02
LEFT on THE SOUND BOATS
1000 NTGHTSHTRTS FOUND m THB
YEARS COURSE.

sTSG.N1EE. ~ y A@AN W - SNlhOllI
the Other Treasure TrOve-New Eng.
land Comes Here for It's Store Cloths.
Although many thousands Of dollars
worth Of valuAbles and q great amount
| OF money are found on the Sound steamers
every year, there isn't enough unclaimed
property left at the end Of a year to pay
| to have q sale Of IL; while the owner Of tnr
money generally puts In q claim for X
before il reaches the general Office in New
York, said one Of the stewards Of a Sound
boat.
This statement was made during the
discussion. Of a new record made a few
weeks ago, In the way Of the number OF
articles left In the staterooms OF one Of
the boats at the end Of a trip and the valus
OF those articles. While an-ordinary weeks
trips Of one Of the big steamers generally
nets about 5000 in money and valuablee,
such as watches, rings and various other
articles OF jeWelry and wearing apparel,
nearly 81 900 worth OF such stuff was picked
up one morning after an eastward trip Of
one steamer.
81 suppose l wont be believed when
I say that IL IL almost as safe for the oc-
cupant Of a stateroom on one OF the big
Sound boats + o leave anything Of value
in his room as it would be to take IL to a
safety deposit vault. but our records will
show that such has been generally the
case" continued the steward. 'The strict
est rule the company has for the guidance Of.
It's employees is that no n shall enter a
single one Of the staterooms after the
passengers nave disembarked until after
the OFFICIAL searcher has made his rounds.
"This man is always one Of the conf
papy's oldest and most trusted employees.
Whatever he finds Of value is reported
at once, and if it is at the eastern end OF
the trip the found articles are kept safely
until the steamer goes back to New York.
when they are sent there and turned in at
the general Offices.
1T may also seem strange that whereas
nearly every railroad of any size gets
enough found articles every year to make
a big auction sale, which generally nets a
good rakeof for the company, the coast
wise steamship companies, and ours in
particular, couldn't raise enough money
on the unclaimed articles they get to pay
the auctioneer's fee.
Il have never heard any especially good
reason advanced for this scarcity Of valu-
aba articles that the owners haven't taken
the pains to claim except hat IL is n trouble
to trace anything that has been left on a
boat. With the railway trains or surface
cars it isn't easy to get a line on the iden-
teal car or train very soon, and unless
the article left is Of great value persons
who haveleft their belongings do not bother
about tracing them,
They generally conclude that there are
slim chances that the lost articles nave
been picked up by the train authorities.
and the result Is that during the year the
railroad companies collect a great amount
Of valuable stuff.
"f a traveller on one Of the Sound
steamers leaves his wallet under his pillow
in his berth and doesn't notice 1t until he
gets some distance away, he is pretty sure
to wire the port where he left tho steamer
and give instructions as TO what is 10 be
done. In the case of q very large amount
Of money or valuable jewelry be generally
comes back and registers his claim In
where tho claimants for lost articles didn't
have their property returned to them very
soon.
Il don't say that the company doeen't
get a vast amo1nt Of stuff during the year
that there IL no claim for, but IL ID Of a
nature that can be best described by the
word junk. Some of it is left by accident
and a great deal is left ~purposely.
For instance, a man from somewhere
in Rhode Island goes down 10 New York
and buys a new pair Of shoes. He hasn't
time 20 change them in the store. so he
puts them or on the boat. Then he leaves
the old ones, and we find them when the
room is searched.
The same is true Of hats, IL takes a
pretty good hat to induce the owner 10
carry it away with him when he has bought
a new one.
"Sncks eeem TO Iced the list Of articles
left behind, but the searcher is allowed
TO use his discretion as TO whether he will
turn them in or not. As the company
that are left behind, the wisest plan often
lines 10 TO dump the abandoned socks
over the side Of the steamer.
One interesting feature Of the years
roundup Of found articles is the varied as
up, ranging all the way from silk pajamas
to the old fashioned nightshirt.
when a man or woman Is packing up
after arising in the morning Il is not ur-
likely that whatever style Of night garment
was worn will be left stretched across the
that the garment is q part OF the bed cloth
ing. When he or she discovers the next
night that the robe de NUT has been left
behind II isn't likely that II will be sent for.
because sometimes the express charges will
almost equal the value.
The leading articles OF attire left on the
steamers last year were 1000 pairs OF socks,
1 900 nightshirts. old style: 200 suits Of
pa jamas, 500 pairs Of shoes. 600 hats, half
soft and half derby; 100 assorted suits ~
underwear and 1900 necktiee.
You might suppose that the figures srs
large to attract wholesale buy
ere by the score II a sale Of the articles were
arranged. but the fact that most Of the
articles were at least half worn out would
have spoiled a sale at almost any price.
The final disposition of all this old truck
u the best that could be made. I believe.
for although IL is all given away. a great
many needy persons got a lot OF good OUT q
It all. When the year IL up word is sent
10 the charity hospitals that the
company has a lot Of assorted articles a
which might be made exceedinglY
useful In the hospitals.
THE representatives OF thos4 institutions
then go 20 the company's office AID take
their pick, the first to arrive having the
pick OF the lot, Some one has use for ever
lost thing, until finally the years collection
Of abandoned articles 10 gone.
i remember that on one occasion The
found 9 set OF false teeth. nearly
new, under a pillow In one of the state
Whether IL was abandoned or