The Washington times., 1921-11-09
U.s.. MEAL
TICKET IS
SC0RNED
Detective Mansfield Is Heroic
SIeuth Who Ran Down
Croundless Charges.

A tubercular patient from Mt.
Alto United States Hospital, on
Wisconsin avenue, was yesterday ar
rested In a Fourteenth street lunch
room, 'bawled" out by q Washing
ton detective for eating too much
and given a ride in the patrol wagon
to No. / precinct station because he
rendered Treasury Department
meal ticket for his 75-cent lunch.
Greek Refuses Ticket.
The incident began in the Model
,Lunchroom, 734 Fourteen street
northwest. where Shuford c. Fincher.
the veteran in question, ate his lunch
preparatory to calling on an occulist
Jfpr the examination of his eyes. He
WAS ordered to report there by the
Public Health Service, which fur
nished him with a meal ticket worth
81. Hundreds Of thousands Of these
tickets have been issued to men In
the government hospitals.
After I had eaten my lunch,
offered the meal ticket to the man at
the counter" Fincher told The Times
To-day. THE man. a Greek, refused to
hccept 1t, saying 1t was no good.
while / was trying to convince
him that the United States govern.
ment was good for 1t, man stepped
Gp and said. TN take charge Of
this case. Just turn 1t over to me.
II asked the man what he had to
do with 1t. He turned back his coat,
showed me q badge and said he was
. Washington detective.
when I told him I was too weak
70 go out in the weather, he went to
a policeman near by and had the
patrol wagon called. While we were
waiting for the wagon he asked me
how much I had eaten.
"'Only 75 cents worth I told him.
He bawled me out and said: Why, /
ate 80 cents worth. and that was
enough. You birds think you can have
II soft4because you are feeding at the
expense of the Government. / wish /
had someone to pay for my eats.
v Sergeant Got Brave.
Dragged up to the bar at No. 1
station like an ordinary criminal,
Fincher was asked his name, address,
age and the usual questions.
Pleading for an opportunity to put
up bond or \ II up friends at the hos
pital, Fincher was shunted into back
room and told to wait until the cap
tain could be interviewed him his
case.
. when I got up from a chair and
started back to ask the sergeant to
let me go, because I was due at
o'clock at the office of the oculist.
the sergeant said: You sit down or
I'll knock you down and drag you
into a CELL
IAN that saved me was the appear
, ance Of the captain. who. when he
saw my meal ticket, ordered me re-
leased"
Detective Mansfield Was Sleuth.
The police blotter at No. 1 station
shows Fincher listed for "investiga-
ton" The arresting officer was given
ing when The Times made inquiries
which led the police to change the
name of tho arresting officer to 80.
w. Mansfield" a detective from No.
b precinct. The latter officer. It is
said, made the arrest.
station SerRt. w. II. Carlin. of No.
1, this morning declared that every
consideration was given the young
war veteran; that he was treated
kindly and that mo harsh words
were used"
IT did not threaten him." Carlin
said. IT merely told him to sit In
the back room until the captain could
talk with him.
Two ex-service men. now under
treatment in local Government hos
pitals, were here today complaining
that local restaurants would not
honor Government meal tickets.
Thinks Ticket Il Good.
"Of course We know that these
tickets are orders on the United
States Treasury and are as good as
gold, but we have no way of max
ing the restaurant people accept
them.
SHOULD an ex-service man tender
one Of those requisition papers to a
restaurant and have It refused. II
would appear to me that he has done
all that In necessary and that the
Restaurant would have no cause to