Clearfield Republican. [volume] (Clearfield, Pa.) 1851-1937, 1869-04-14
CLEARFIFLD. PA
sWINDLING IN NEW YORK.

~ ovOHOi uOOS ohV Ingenious lrlCk
for swindling the gullable public begin
to show signs of giving out, either
through the exposures 10 the papers,
the action Of the police, or the natural
exhaustation Of the material on which
its authors feed, than another is de.
vised and forthwith the geese who
ought 10 be taken out on Sarum Plain,
and driven cackling homo TO Camelot,
are once more plncked, and the land
is deafened with their indignant Kisses.
Time was when the victims appealed
TO the law. Then, when that abstract
power was found to be impotent to
punish or to save, they wrote TO the
Mayor, the Sheriff, the Coroner, the
Jailor at the Tombs, the Chief of Po
lice, the Sexton of Grace Church, or
even to the Street Commissioner, in
the vain hope of obtaining redress
through mystoriousagencies, supposed
to be known only TO those dignitaries
AT last they invoked the press. As
fast as new bubbles were blown and
burst, bushels of complaining letters
were sent to the daily papers of New
York, and time after time the deluded
victims of the swindlers' creed and
their own ignorance were cautioned
against placing confidence in the in
ventors Of schemes, which, according
TO Josh Billings, "haye all the pre-
monitory symptoms Of dead beat"
The warnings Of the press were Of no
further avail than TO break up few
rascally firms for the time being.
These began TO operate again, before
long, under new names, and with new
plans. The same victims were trap
ped, more letters were written, the
old caution reiterated, bu. again and
again the Kellys, the Clark & Web
sters, and tho dozen and one other
Adventures TO whom the commission
Of fraud was legitimate business, food
ed tho country with their circulars
cast their bread upon the waters as it
were-and the return was all their
fancy reckoned it. Mayor Hall has
recently issued a proclamation warn.
ing people in the rural districts against
the legion of swindlers who operate
with circulars, bnt il is vain to hope
that even this Official caution will be
needed.
Many are apt TO think that none but
young and inexperienced people are
taken in by these sharpers. @In the
morn and liquid dew Of youth conta-
gious vices are most imminent" and
an epidemic of thievery of the baser
sort is sure ID prove fatal TO the thin
purses Of yong rustics of more Gre
duli'y than Judgment. But the dan
ger is not confined to them. Old peo-
pie of both sexes, who have lived !
through generations Of all kinds of
swindles are hooked by every rogue
that throws out printed line of gilt
tering promises, anG their lamenta-
tions are sad 10 hear They read the
warnings Of the papers, but listen at
the same time to the honeyed words
Of the tempter, and again invest their
money in his schemes, only to lose it
forever
HOW THE swINDLFRs OPERATE.
There are one or two nondestript
firms in New York whose main busi.
ness consists in collecting the names
and addresses of obscure people
throughout the country, and renting
the list 10 adventurors at so much per
thousand names. One of these firms
on Nassau street is reputed to have a
genuine list numbering 300, 900 names
confined TO the Northern, Eastern and
Western States alone. When a gifl
enterprise adventurer desires to sow
his circulars broadcast over the land.
he makes an arrangement with the
list-holder, and at given price copies
as many names as he may wish to use,
and for many days the owners of these
names keep themselves in a state of
bewilderment in attempting TO dis
cover by what means they are known
by the single-hoarled capitalist of the
great metropolis. A large proportion
Of them feel hattered at the attention
paid them, and fall incontinently into
the net of the snarer. TO them the
simple fact of his having put his pro.
misses in print is sufficient evidence of
his honesty. Others are not captured
till they read the recommendations
purporting to come from the Tribune
and other New York Journals; and
others, still, refuse to be entrapped
until they find their country paper
indorsing the swindlo; whereupon
they lose no time in taking stock in
the brilliant enterprise-with what
result let the half million of regular
gulls testify.
THE GIFT ENTERPRISE.
II have always found that when any man offers
no $40 for so cents he les ! may think he
means 10 do Il, but he don't think 20 but I may
nossihlr come within 81 so Of Il once and IL do