The Dawson news. (Dawson, Ga.) 1889-current, 1910-01-19
UNCLE SAM AS A GAMBLER.
Auction of dead" Mail Articles Gets Him Something
for Less. It's Safe Bet and Sure Thing for Uncle

WASHINGTON, D. C.-Many per-
sons are unaware that Uncle Sam is
one of the most adept gamblers of
the day, and that what is more, he
advertises that he is a gambler and
does not care what the 90,000,000
people in the United States think
about it. 1t is true, however, that
he goes into the game but once a
year, then generally adds a clear
$4,000 or more to the credit of the
postoffice department.
The recent annual sale of unde-
livered articles for the division of
dead letters of this department dis
posed of 7,7S9 sales parcels de-
scribed in the printed catalogue fur
nished bidders and aggregated $1O,-
$500, or an average price of $1.35
for each parcel. AS compared with
a similar sale held in December,
1903, at which 8,7S4 parcels were
sold for $11, 372.75, the average
price obtained is an increase of APP
proximately cents per catalogue
item over that of the preceding year.
The interest of the general public
in sales of this character, which
have always been extremely popular,
appears to increase from year to
year. 1t was found necessary at the
recent auction to obtain a detail of
policemen to prevent overcrowding
Of the room in such a manner as to
permit the proper disposition of ar
ticles sold and prevent injury to peo-
pie in attendance.
Comment has been frequently
made on the element of chance, or
alleged lottery feature, of sales of
this character, which doubtless
makes them attractive to persons of
speculative temperament, but as dis
tinguished from lottery or gift en-
terprise, a bidder in this instance
always gets something, though it
frequently happens that his purchase
tails far short of the price he has
paid for it, the parcel containing
some little trinket of a few cents
value.
The clerks of the department as
signed to the work OF preparing and
cataloging unclaimed articles found
in the mails for disposition by auc-
zion are selected because of their
supposed knowledge of the values of
miscellaneous merchandise, but it
would be difficult to find an apprais-
er with an exact knowledge of the
value of all articles lost in the mails.
The chance that a clerk has not
fully appreciated the value of a bit
of lace, a piece of embroidery, or an
article of jewelry, sent as a gift and
lost in transit, is ever present with
the bidder at such a time, and the
occasional finding of something
worth more than the description in
the catalogue is what doubtless at
tracts the crowd the gambling in
stinct
While it is true that merchandise
sent as a gift is unusually selected,
and consequently of considerable in
trinsic value it is evident from an
examination of the parcels offered
that very large percentage of the
enclosures consists of articles lost
from parcels posted by large mail
order houses, or which have been
sent as premiums by firms engaged
in selling cheap jewelry and miscel-
taneOus articles. In other words, it
is the hope of obtaining the gift par
eel that invites the bidder.
So long as the department is forced
by reason of the operation of the
present statute 10 dispose of I'M
claimed merchandise in this manner
there viii remain the alleged OBJ
jectionable lottery feature in these
sales.
In these sales many purchasers
lose sight of the fact that were the
articles sold to be OF any value they
would have been registered to in
sure their safe delivery, and that for
this reason they must necessarily be
of little value. On the other hand
the government knows that at each
Of these sales thousands of dollars
will be realized from articles that
should they be exhibited in any
store, would hardly be worth wrap
ping UP and carrying home, much
less spending in some cases many
hard earned dollars for them. 1t is
a safe bet and sure gain for Uncle
Sam