Cash crunch? Check this out

There is a ready solution to reader Candy Butler’s problem with small shops in Germany and Austria failing to take credit cards [“Be Ready to Pay,” Readers Recommend, July 13].

A few years back, in a Danish bookstore, I saw something I had to have: a marvelously reproduced ancient map of Scandinavia. Being near trip’s end, I had maxed out my single credit card, had little cash and did not want to carry one more package.

The proprietor suggested a personal check. Wow! I gave her a check (that I am sure she prudently waited to clear her bank), and she mailed my trophy, rolled, into a mailing tube, and shipped via first-class mail. The item nearly beat me home.

Robert E. Tumelty

Seal Beach