The Washington herald., 1918-03-02

!
New York. Mar This is a story
l picked up on Fifth avenue that
has all the elements-save the love
touch-of a modern mystery story.
NJ. Parrish Watson is a wealthy col
lsctor of Chinese art. He sends ennis
saries all over China digging Ep
treasures. One of his agents has
just returned.
In Peking he was In the shop OF a
pawnbroker. A silk hated american.
a polished man Of the world came in,
to secure loan on a pearl which he
took out of a velvet bag. The broker
applied all the tests and was salts
fed the pearl was genuine. He ad-
vanced $1,000
Later in the day one of his experts
rushed to him breathlessly with the
startling statement that the pearl was
the most clever counterfeit he had
ever seen. The broker made another
examination and found he had been
the victim Of a film fam artist
Several days afterwards he called
every jeweler in Peking into a con-
ference. He told them of his expert
ence and he said he was simply GO
lilS " ldht Ills lOSS DNA ne lnOuSHl u
was his duty to warn his fellow mer-
chants. He held up the pearl before
them.
Here it is' he said. ITO show you
what | think of it and that the incl
dent is closed I am going to destroy
it." He placed the pearl on an iron
and with hammer smashed it to tiny
fragments with one blow.
The next day all the Peking news
papers carried a story about the way
the merchant had been tricked and
how he had destroyed the bogus gem.
Several weeks went by and the Incl
dent was almost forgotten.
One morning the American who had
pawned the pearl entered the shop. A
clerk recognized him and went to-
ward. Il have come for my pearl"
he said
The clerk was in a panic. He
begged the customer to wait a few
minutes and he rushed of to
| his employer with the news The
broker came out from his private Of
| flee and met the customer.
Il have come for my pearl" re-
peated the American.
You have the money to redeem itg''
he was asked.
For answer the American counted
out the exact amount and placed il on
\ the counter. The broker went to the
safe and brought back the pearl that
was pawned. He had cleverly tricked
the trickster. He knew there was onlv
one chance of getting his money back
and that was to make the customer
believe the pearl had been DESTROYED.
He resorted to this ruse and did not
destroy the pawned pearl but a substI-
tute. A surprised American walked
out of the place with his counterfeit
| jewel-gnashing his teeth just like the
smooth villain in the melodrama of
old.
| War time afternoon teas, which have
the approval of the government, are
now a feature of society life in New
York. Debutantes and matrons may
now serve their tea at four O'Clock
and still do their bit
The patriotic hospitality is measured
by the amount of sugar and wheat
not consumed. The result is obtain
able and it was proved at a demon
stration given by government expert
at hotel to members of the -Four
Hundred. Lemon is dipped in honey
to conserve sugar.
Tea biscuits are made with oatmeal
-four instead of wheat flour. At the
close of the demonstration the guests
sang This is the End of Wheatless
Day"
Seen around the town: A japanese
hat check hoy. A canvasser selling
parrots from house to house. A fat
woman rolling hoop in her side yard
as a method of reducing. Three red
silk shirts on Broadway. A sign read
ing "Corsets for Men" A sweatered
youth wearing white kid gloves on
Fifth Avenue. A musician trying to
get on a crowded subway train with
a base drum and growing apoplectic
for his repeated failures. Third
Avenue cafe where TrotZky used "a
loaf with his picture in the window
and over 1t the inscription Zone OF
our customers"