The Birmingham age-herald., 1908-06-13
SOME ODD METHODS OF MAKING MONEY Queer Things People Do to
 Make a Living TN THE UNITED STATES Dr. cockroach" of Louisville Rids Places of Offensive Bugs at So
 Much Per-"Bird Doctor
 and Specialist"
TIN THE UNITED STATES

From the Kansas City Journal.
 In the whole history of the world there has never been country where it is so easy to make money as in the United States, and this is the most prosperous time the people of our nation have ever known. That there are many ways of making a living besides being a life in- surance president, a prize fighter or hod-carrier is shown by the following col lection of unusual occupations.
 Of the whole list of unique callings that have come to my attention none is more peculiar than the business of "Dr. Cock roach of Louisville. For a stipulated an- rual consideration the doctor contracts to keep ones premises rid of cockroaches. He does not whistle them away like the Pied Piper of Hamln, but at regular in- tervals he comes around with queer look ing tools and mysterious powders, by means of which he persuades the cock reaches to go.
 Bird Doctor and Specialist is the sign on the shingle which hangs in front of an establishment on Broadway in New York. The proprietor is a young woman who takes mammals pet canary to board while the family Is away at the seashore or ab- sent from home at other times. She also las hospital for sick birds and teaches backward songsters their mission in the world. While 1t might seem that this young woman is making small use of her time she really knows all about birds and their troubles, and Is able to make a competence from her work.
 An Englishnian possessed of a small an- nuity and in bad health went to Fl Paso, Tex The expenses of living were so great in the southwestern city that he soon found his income inadequate. He invested all the ready money he had in eight gilt and gaudy popcorn stands, with little engines to run the peppers. The idea worked and before long he branched out to San Antonio. He soon worked up a Baby Trust which brought him an income of SS000 year.
 A woman in Boston makes business of taking inventories of houses which are rented furnished. She comes to the house and makes complete lists in triplicate of every article, with a description of its condition. When the house is given up she comes again and checks over the household goods and appraises the loss or damage. She has been so successful in this kind of work that her services are much in demand.
 An Italian in New York takes over the rubbish from the garbage collections of the great eastern metropolis at stated annual price and makes from $20000 to s30,oO0 year from the business. He em- ploys hundreds of sorters and pckers. who go over the rubbish to get out old bottles, rags, rubber, leather and other junk. It is said that he realizes from s2OOo to s90o0 a year on old rubber shoes alone.
 A Memphis newspaper woman boldly advertised in the newspapers that for a consideration she would prepare papers to be read at women's clubs, write speeches for banquets or trace pedigrees back to forgotten grandmothers to the Colonial Danes. Her advertising was persistent until commissions began to come in and many a woman leader of club life in this or that particular town has shown in the reflected glory of this southern girls hard working genius.
 Several years ago a shoe buyer for one of the Chicago department stores con- ceived the idea of buying up slightly damaged or blemished shoes from the manuf lecturers and retailing the same at a sacrifice price. He opened up with one clerk in a single room near the roof of a skyscraping office building. To get a good pair of S5 shoes with nothing more than little scratch on them for $2 was such bargain that customers came fast The business increased so rapidly that the original store has been enlarged to 15 rooms, and 40 clerks are employed instead of one. The capital earned from the orig inal store has been reinvested until now the concern owns eight large stores in other places.
 A New Jersey girl, broken down by teaching and office work was ordered by her doctor to get some occupation which would keep her out of doors. She followed the physicians advice by acquiring a boggy farm in New Jersey, where she began the culture of bullfrogs. Persons who heard of her new venture smiled un- til they learned that she was making a lot of money selling frogs legs at big prices to New York hotels and restaur- ants. In order to get the fresh air she does her own killing. Attired in rubber boots, she tramps about the marshes and shoots the frogs with q small rife.
 An enterprising New Yorker makes a business of matching buttons. But this man is no relation to the famous Bin, the Button Man, who makes campaign badges. Bim makes speciality of fore casting the action of political conven- tions. Time and again this enterprising man has successfully defied all the polit- ical prophets. In 1900 he stalSed his repu- tation on the belief that Roosevelt would be nominated vice president and made a big clean up from the sale of buttons at the doors of the convention hall.
 The United States consumes millions of dives every year, but they are nearly all unripe. About eight years ago a Califor- ria woman while travelling learned the secret of pickling ripe olive in a pecu liar fashion. The year after she came home she marketed 20 gallons of ripe olives. Three years later she could not