The aegis & intelligencer. [volume] (Bel Air, Md.) 1864-1923, 1867-06-14
The Hay Fork SWindle.

Not long since there appeared in this county
q man representing himself as an authorized
agent for she sale. ola patent hay fork, which
he represented as great invention, and, like
the Kentuekian's horse, 'as good for one thing
as another" Companies were to be formed, and
notes 10 be taken, payable some long time after
date, and Sinclair & Co., of Baltimore, were to
furnish the machines, on the order, if We recol-
lect Alright, Of the agent We do not charge
linn with any attempt to swindle our people, for
as he made no sales in this county that we have
heard of, there is no means of testing his inten-
tons. But it seems little singular that at
about the same time party appeared in Cecil
county with the same fork, and that the oppor-
tunity was offered the people of Cecil county to
test the intention Of the agent travelling there
Not long since, some Of the New York country
papers gave some accounts of extensive and sim
liar frauds having been perpctrated on many of
the farmers of that State. This is an eastern in
vention, of course, and as it is from the land of
steady habits and political parsons, there may be
come who may attribute this attempt to deceive,
TO the same cause that is assigned by some as
matter Of Equalization and excuse for Ketchem for
geres-a passion for speculation. And it may
be that these fellows, when young, were as good
and mild children as Ketchem is represented to
have been. OF 1.-The Cecil county speculation the
Cecil Wing says:
The HAY FORK SwIEDLE.--One Of the most eX-
tFnsive swindles ever perpetrated in this country
is that recently practiced upon some forty or fifty
Of our farmers Icy couple of scoundrels calling
themselves Dickerson aud Sherman.
Some three weeks ago these fellows stopped at
the Howard House. in this town, and commenced
operations by informing farmers and others that
they were agents for a patent hay-fork, dung
fork and potato-digger combined, which was to
be fastened to the tail of u cart, and to perform
various wonderful feats, in an incredible short
space Of time and with an incredible saving of
labor.
This wonderful combination machine among its
other good qualities, had the advantage Of selling
much cheaper when it could be sold 10 a combi-
nation OF FIVE or six men from each district in the
county. And our sharpers soon managed, under
their favorable terms, TO find forty or fifty men
in the county simple enough to give note of
fifty dollars each, payable in one year, with i'll
terest from date. These notes were made pay
able to bearer, and R. Sinclair d Co., of Balti-
more, according to the agreement of Dickerson
and Sherman, were TO furnish the machines. We
do not know what private or verbal arrangement
was made between the sharpers and their vic
TINS lui us soon as they had obtained suf6-
cient number of notes, they sold them for S25
each to some Of the Elkton capitalists, who COB
bled up coed paper, readily at such liberal
discount. But Dickerson and Sherman had
hardly left town, carrying with them some ST.
1000 or $1,000, before the purchasers of the
patent combination machine discovered that
Sinclair & Co. had never heard of such men,
and were consequently not responsible for any
of their contracts, and that they had been badly
sold
Dickcrson had dashing looking woman with
him, that he passed as his wife, and who was
greatly admired by some of our young men.
We do not know whether the makers Of the
notes will be able 10 escape their payment, but
presume some lawsuits will arise out of them.
The swindle in its different features, strongly
resembles one practiced in the interior of New
York. a short lime since, called the ebay rake
swindle," and exposed at the time in the New
York Tribune, and We presume Dickerson and
Sherman are part of the same gang that operated
SO extensively with the hay rake.