The silver messenger. (Challis, Idaho) 1890-1912, 1910-02-08
JUST JUNK
ILTHEN the South street man was

MAYHEM the South street man was
w asked: what 10 junk?" he con-
centrated his attention on it for
time, and said: Junk IL anything
and everything that il supposed to
be worn out and useless, but really
isn't. 1t is stuff that, having lived
one life, comes here and begins an
other. For instance. here are these
ships sails. They've lived their life
aboard ships, they've been all over
the oceans, and now they are to set
tie down on land
What will they do?"
BE useful as coverings for build
ers' materials, or for wagons and
their goods, or they may go to sea
again on small schooners."
what good is this old roper"
"Some of that is bought by ves-
sells. Such as is too far gone for
such use goes into paper stock"
"Well, now here's an old Spanish
bell, big and fine toned. Where did
you get that and what will you do
with it?"
THAT is from Porto Rican church
1t was brought in as old metal, for
the tongue was out. Still, it was
easy to put tongue in, and so the
duty was saved"
"And which of our officers stole e
church bell?"
ut wasn't stolen. 1t was lying in
a storehouse there where our troops
&c i to Porto Rico. 1t had hung in
the belfry of church that had been
torn down, I think"
"What use Is this rusty old chain? p
There are some boats that buy
nothing except secondhand material,
so those chains sell to them. When
they are too rus.y they go for old
from"
what sort Of people buy these
lamps and lanterns :"
"Those are ships lanterns.
Wealthy people buy them for curios."
"What is the difference between
junk and antiques?
"Ahl You'll have to ask the Fifth
avenue art dealers about that.
many and many battered bit they
get from us for song and sell for a
fancy figure. but you're in the
wrong shop to learn about junk. Go
round and see the man in Front
street. He's got the greatest collec-
ton in New York. This place is half
ship chambers"
Junk. sir; no, sir, this isn't junk
shop. Far from it, SIR" said the man
in Front street. "A junk dealer is a
man who goes about in a small boat
and buys cast-of things from vessels
Junk dealers have to obtain licenses
and the police can search their places
at any time"
well. what would you call this es.
tabhshment?"
The Front street man thought for
awhile before he replied: II would
call it curio emporium"
80! And may l ask what in the
world you do with guns that are al
old and as rusty as these in curic
emporium"
Those are not so bad as they look
They can be cleaned up and will kill
just as we'll as they did during the
civil war;"
who buys them7"
"All sorts of behind-the-age PEG
pie. Take one of those guns into
the mountains of Virginia. an 1t will
be modern. They're still using flint
locks there. All through South
/. A,ro-;o. ouI AS-;oo %1,oros. -. -
such guns, and in many parts of Asia
too. l sold 200 of them last week tx
man in the China trade. His firm
has eight ships, and they're aiming
the crews against the pirates thai
now infest Chinese waters"
But some of these are rusted t.
pieces."o
+ "Well. they either serve as curio,
or as old iron. When they're too bat
for anything else, they are melted
down and begin hfe over again"
Il what guns are those with the loni
barrels?"
Arab. Notice the broad butts
They seem senseless, but there's
good reason for them. They're mad
like that so that the weapons won
sink in the sand when being loaded
This weapon with the enormousl
thick barrel is an elephant gun. l
weighs rs pounds, and is made s.
thick in order to lessen the force O
the recoil from the heavy charge. o
powder. You see that it's in perfec
condition. A man rushed in with i
the day before yesterday. l didn
> think anything of it; wouldn't eve
give him two dollars. He said h
, would leave 1t with me anyhow. Wei
that gun turned out to be the YER
weapon q Montclsir IN. j.. man wa