This is fifth annual Musical Instrument Gift Day, sponsored by the National Pawnbrokers Association. Its purpose is to distribute musical instruments to organizations in need. This is just one high note for the nearly 6,400 pawnshops across the nation, which provide valuable lending and resale services in their communities. Another important player in selling used goods is the much larger used miscellaneous merchandise stores, which number close to 78,000 from coast to coast. These stores are where you go if, for instance, you are looking for a copy of a 1934 National Geographic. They are mostly small, with three-quarters of them run solely by their owners. As a group, they generate more than $11 billion in revenue each year. You can find more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau, online at <www.census.gov>.