New Britain herald., 1929-11-23
THE OBSER VER- Makes Random Observations
 On the City ant Its People


'oulittliIltn punching the amount . on the check. to be paid as the GUS toner leaves. The system worIs all riSht-eXcept that during rush hours it is difficult to keep track of each customer coming in, thus pre- venting him from taking two checks. Given two checks, a crowded res taurant. and a nickel. it is possible 10 get turkey dinner worth q dollar. Here's ho" it worked. The customer GianCe9 hurriediy around to see that no employees are watching, graDs two checks. and barely shows him. self through the crowd at one coul- ter.
 "Cuppa cawfce." hr says. and gets il. presenting one check. on which the countcrman. with q thousand orders on his mind, hurried,y punches q nickel.
 The sly one retires 10 corner anu Guzzles down his coffee. Then he Saunters up to the other counter and orders a real dinncr-turkey and dressing, mashed potato, vege- table side dishes. pie a la mode. soup if he wants it. and perhaps even salad. He presents the sec ond check. still unused, and bears his meal away in triumph. When he finishes eating he presents the coffee check at the counter, pays q nickel and walks out. having gvpood the establishment at least s1.
 At first glance the Hystem may seem rather dangerous. but the mn who have worked it aver otherwise. There is no law to prevent a cus- toner from making a mistake and grabbing two meal checks as ne goes in, so if he is discovered :n the act glib apology will settle the question. When he presents the second check for his sized din- ncr he still is safe. for if he is dis covered in this( he still can claim T mistake, and he hasn't refused tp pay for what he has ordered on both checks.
 The real danger comes when he walks out and pays only the nick cl ticket, but a clever man can easily tell before he even starts out whether he has been discovered for the average restaurant man who caught customer in such a scheme would clearly indicate that somn- thing was wrong. He would check up with the countcrmen and con- suit the cashier, who sits neara.t the counter where the checks fo, newcomers are exposed Somebor.. ;. would be bound to indicate suspi- ciol, and If that is shown the man nan square everything and draw tn" teeth of the waiting proprietor hy paying both checks quite uncon- CrIncdlE.
 The scheme worked so success fully in Springfield that the poor f'Staurant men were genuinely alarmed at thc wide margin be- tween food cooked and food paid for Finally someone realized the t%me could be pulled by grabbing two tickets, and it vas stopped once and for all by putting the tickets under the eagle eye of the cashier.
 Two cups of coffee for the price Of one are obtained through sheer nerve. The customer buys the cof- i"c and drinks about a third of It, returning to the counter. 10 com- plain that it is too hot. He asks for more milk and gets it. filling LID the cup. He drinks about half the coffee and takes the rest back to the other counterman, complainln~ 10 him the coffee is too cold and contains too much milk. A few Well chosen words conyinccs the counter man that he must have put too much milk in the cup, and the mug. Is again filled to the brim, this tim" with hot coffee. Net result: nearly two cups of coffee for the price Of one.