Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-12-20
SALE BREAKS RECORD CHILD KILLED BY CAR
Dead Letter Auction of 1908 Faymates See Four
Nets Total of 81 900. Crushed Under Wheels.
TERMINATES WITH A RUSH WAS ROMPING IN STREET.
Necessary Open Darted Out From Curb Trolley
9th Street for Traffic. Came Along.
LINE EXTENDS FOUR BLOCKS MOTORMAN COULD NOT STOP
Lucky-Rumors AreL Releas
of
Dead Letter Auction of 1908
Nets Total of $1,000.
TERMINATES WITH A RUSH
Efforts Of Police Necessary to Open
9th Street for Traffic.
LINE EXTENDS FOUR BLOCKS
Some Folks Obtain Bargains, While
Others Are Not Lucky-Rumors
of "Finds.'

OF "EindS.'
There will be whole lot of fine pres
ents delivered by Santa Claus this year
wide Of the destinations intended by the
senders. Perhaps if it had not been for
the dead letter office these particular pres
ents would never snuggle in the toes of
any stockings at all. and would have
been waits upon a restless sea of doubt
and uncertainty. AS it is. 10000 articles.
ranging from gold filings from all sorts
of teeth to petticoats of every size, have
been distributed by the dead letter office
through Marcus Notes. auctioneer, to the
great crowd that attended the dead letter
Office sale, which ended last night.
1t was q record breaking sale, too. The
10000 articles were sold to .7J4 persons
and netted about $1,000. Last year the
receipts totaled $3.50, but this year,
either the promise of good times or the
recklessness Of the people who patronize
the sales has turned a much prettier
penny into Uncle Sans Treasury.
Services Of Police Necessary.
What a crowd was there last night! The
first precinct got a hurry call on the tele-
phone late in the afternoon, which left no
doubt in the captains mind. He would
either have to send a squad of his
huskiest cops or 9th street would be use
less for traffic for several hours. When
his men finally got the crowd lined up
there was a string of persons extending
four blocks up the street, and the auction
room was crowded SO that the walls ap-
peared to be bulging. Every one of them
had a catalogue in his or her hand. and
the desirable articles were plainly marked
with a leadpencil.
The last hours of the sale were de-
voted to the handling Of pretty good
tewelry, such as watches, spoons. neck
chains, hatpins, diamonds. pearl penhold-
ers, cuff buttons. and the like Specula-
tors were attracted by the character of
the goods, and the bidding at times was
animated. 1t was plain that the crowd
was made up of old-time dead-letter-
office experts. as they were on to the
quick tricks Of the auctioneer.
Spurs on the Crowd.
AS the gentleman with the insistent
voice bawled out his prices the mere rails
ing Of a hand meant a bid of quarter
of dollar.
Number 1885," he would say. "One
dollar l see. and quarter and half.
One seventy-five. one seventy-five, one
seventy-dye. What's the matter with
you people? You're cheap. Two dollars,
two dollars. There's sport he makes it
two seventy-fve. Don't let him get away
with 1t. Thank you. In the corner there
says three. He says three. Three. Three.
Three. Three. Going. Gone to the gent
near the window
The aent near the window thereupon
gives UP s. just because the catalogue
said package number 3S5 was believed to
contain mans silver watch. 1t hap
pened to be beauty. too. so he was able
TO turn around to a less speculative per-
son behind him and get five for it.
Elephant on His Hands.
Now. the auctioneer again:
Number $50. An ivory elephant 1t
got away from the republican party. One
dollar I'm bid. One dollar; one dollar
and a quarter; and half; and a half:
make it seventy-hve. Don't go to sleep.
You can sleep all day tomorrow. Here's
the one chance Of your life. No one
thinks more Of the elephant than the gen.
tI.man with the green hat"
But the gentleman with the green hat
got stuck. He thought it was an ivory
give IT back but by the time he had
pushed forward to lodge his complaint
two other packages had been sold and he
was scorned-
Gold From Many Teeth.
One man run up from 81 to $50 on pack
age go. containing 65s penDyweights OF
old dental gold. Gold from every corner
OF the globe. and all of 1t from the teeth
Of folks who for some reason or other
wanted. to send their filings to their
friends. Oh. such conglomeration of pains
was represented IN that little bunch OF
gold filings.
The dental chair put many a poor
mortal into the tOrments of the internal
N
teeth. merely to have 1t all knocked down
at auction to a man who tomorrow will
start TO peddle it around for the best
price he can get. There was gold from
the youth and gold from the maiden; gold
from the kind father and from the cruel
husband; gold from the tooth that wiley
knocked from her spouse vita rolling
pin. and gold from the poor old lady
tickied her immensely, because they hit
each other when she closed her mouth.
Then there was long string of wedding
rings and engagement rings. Think OF
in the mails. Were they being
sent or being returned? Each one
OF them has Its own story. which will
probably be known only to two persons.
And now the rings are in the hands of
the barbarians in return for sums
Of from two dollars UP to twenty.
Rumors Ran Rife.
Tnefo Wefo runOrs around the crowd OF
flve-dollar gold pieces being found in bab-
les mittens. 1t Is an old. old rumor, too
Every year q crazy story Of that sort starts
and sets the women--especiaIly the women
wild with excitement. When the panic to
buy gets hold Of them some would bid on
bunch Of scrap iron with the hope of
finding pearl OF great price somewhere
In X. One rumor In evidence last night
concerned lady who had bought little
vase Yesterday. 1t was pretty little
Japanese thing. and she wanted a dupli-
cato OF Ii. So she took it to several of the
flrst-class shops in town and at each
place she was told that they carried moth
ing 80 tawdry. She finally went to a lit
tie store run by Japanese merchant
who told her that she had a prize worth
$500: that 1t was vase of honor made
especially for presentation by the mikado
to a naval officer.
The post Office Official I'm attendance at
the sale said the story was absolutely a
fake-but what good would IL do to tell
That TO folks who are crazy TO get a
kohinoor diamond for three dollars?
Death Of an Old Abolitionist.