Worcester daily spy. [volume] (Worcester [Mass.]) 1850-1888, 1872-03-25

4 tiiaN hAiANh NphiN AAlpN llGhl on AuC uldttGl
and, in the second place, if jury is to decide
ignorance or Indifference as to what is going on
shall not be prerequisite for Juror. | think
that there can be no doubt that now and then,
under our system, an innocent man has been
convicted. Such cases, | hope, are rare. But
it is certain that under it very many guilty per-
sons have escaped conviction upon merely tech
meal grounds.
Saint Patrick's day has come aud gone.
can not decide in my own mind whether its
customary celebration in New York is a nui-
sance or a blessing, The recent celebration was
a great one; and it presented fewer o1jectiona-
able features than has been usual Of late years.
What possible good any one of some 10000
people can find in marching in procession for
several hours through ten miles of street, can
not see But, if they like it, it is none of my
business, so long as they do not interfere with
the rights of others. But, as it happens, such a
| procession must, with us interfere with the
rights OF Others. We have, from the physical
construction Of our island, no possible
route for such procession which shall not cross
our main avenues of travel. Now st. Patrck's
people claim for themselves the priority in the
occupancy of the streets. Nobody must break
| their line. happened to be at S4th street Just
as the procession was passing through it. On
the Sixth aud Seventh avenues transit was as
| electually stopped as if wall had been built
across As far as / could see up and down there
was a perfect jam of street cars, drays and
wagons. So close was the line of the process
sion that it took me, being on foot good half
IN ind OoY, ,ul, xpI,sc I
pass.
| Yet on the other hand, could not fail to no.
tiee the pleasure apparently derived by the null
titudes of spectators. Every inch on the walks
was thronged. The steps to the houses were as
thickly packed as could be- The people indoors
must have been close prisoners. have no doubt
that in the ten miles of street through which the
| procession passed, there were quite as many
people as inhabit one of our smaller states say
Vermont or New Hampshire; and all seemed to
| enjoy themselves hugely. During the day there
was no striking example of disorder The po-
lice reports of the next morning were more full
than usual; but much less full than one would
naturally have anticipated. One thing seems to
me clear. We must have general law regu-
lating such professions; and this law must pro-
vide that at brief intervals of time the process
| sion shall break, so as topermit passage through
it.
wrote lately of the gullibility of humanity
| as exhibited in the case of the so-caled Geneva
watch company. This morning passed their
headquarters. 1t appeared to be in full blast,
as far as could see without entering. The
show of watches in the windows looked finer
than that in Titfany's or Ball & Blacks. The
sO-called silver watches were whittier, the gold
ones yellowe- than one could see elsewhere.
But the Tribune had set itself at work to expose
| the fraud, They had telegraphed to our consul
at Geneva, asking whether there was any such
| firm in Switzerland as the Geneva watch COM
pauy. If so, was it bankrupt, and had it sent
two million dollars worth of watches here to be
sold The return telegram announced that there
was no such company, and that consequently it
could not become bankrupt. The Tribune also
had couple of silver watches bought here, and
sent the cases to the mint to be assayed. The
result was that in each of the heavy cases there
was just .46 worth Of silver, the rest being
iron and copper. The works of these watches
were then sent to liffauy's, who pronounced
them to be utterly worthless as timekeepers
These watches, by the way, purported to be
American, made by "John ElIery," Boston, this
being an imitation of one of the trademarks of
the famous American watch company The re-
puted managers of the Geneva company were
arrested on charge of swindling. One of them,
named Elias, had in advertisements announced
himself as the manager, said that he had depos-
tied Sl5O eco in the hands of lawyer, who
would pay $1,000 to any person who could show
that he had ever swindled anybody; and more
over he had instituted a suit against the Tribune
for libel. This final exposure took place on Thurs
day, But when Elias was arrested, there was
no legal proof that he had anything to do with
the concern, and so he was discharged This
Friday morning, as | have said, the establish.
ment was apparently at work. | enclose one of
the handbills which ! took from the pile at the
door. 1t is worth posting up as an illustration
of the height of impudence Any person who
after this, is swindled by this concern, would
pass muster as juror.
| | begin to be convinced that there is absolute.
ly no limit to the fooishness in the public which
| forms the stock in trade of rogues. do not so
much wonder at the emgrant swindles. A man
landing in strange country, especially if al
most ignorant Of tie language, is about as help
less person as can be imagined. If he hap
pens to be accosted by one who can speak to
him in his own tongue, he naturally supposes
that he has met with a safe counsellor and
guide. When this new friend advises him how
to dispose of his money, no wonder that he is
willing to follow the advice; and since swindlers
| of all IN ne IL ie
that there will be plenty Of them plying their
vocation. Not one case in a score ever comes to
light. Now and then one is caught, and | am
glad to say that there is determination to give
the rogues the full benefit of the law Our clev-
crest thieves lawyers are beginning to find out
that these are unpromising cases. Several of
these swinders have Of late gone up to Sing
Sing; but there are plenty more Of the same
sort left, and plenty Of room in the prison for
them.
But what shall one say of c9se like this,
which has lately turned up2 A young man
from the country, apparently no way deficient
in intelligence, proposed to visit the Central
| park. Walking up town he was accosted by a
nice-ooking parsonage, also going to the park.
| They walked along together, the nicelooking
man, who seemed quite at hOme pointing out
all the obiects Of interest on the way Here
was Stewards marble palace, there the reservoir,
the Cathedral, and so on. In time they reached
the entrance to the park. "The fee for
entrance" says the nice man, ''is sew
enty five cents each; allow me to pay
for both" "0h, no." responds the young man
from the country, "let me pay" at the same
time producing greenback. Nice man demurs
at first, still holding on to the greenback. AT
length he yields reluctantly, and walks lip to
the little lodge to get the tickets and the change.
Unluckily for the sharper, the whole maneuvre
had been watched by quiet looking man in
gray, who was walking about. He laid gentle
hand upon the shoulder of the nice young man
and requested the pleasure Of his company to
the police station. The result of a brief inter.
view with gentleman there, was that the nice
man received an order emitting him to loda
ngs and rarions for six months on BlackwelPs
island.
This man had spent all the morning on the
bare chance of picking up enough To nav far