Daily Los Angeles herald., 1879-03-12
gus Sueelss Aerald.
Hugely Hoazsd.

About a month ago a little box
was forwarded from San Francisco,
from one office to another along the
Southern Express route, which has
been used to perpetrate one of the
most Iudicrous hoaxes on record.
With its career in the upper coun-
ties we have nothing to do. From
Los Angeles to Yuma, Cotton and
San Bernardino, we have. Mr.. H.
Il. Smith, travelling agent of the
Express Company, was given the
box at Los Angeles and warned
that 1t contained jewelry too val.
liable to trust to the ordinary means
of transport, cautioned to keep the
box upon his person, and not to
close his eyes in sleep till he de-
lIvered the precious contents to Mr..
Jones,in Yuma. Arriving in Yuma,
after trip in which he imagined
every sage bush or yellow cac-
tus q road agent, In state of fever
ish fear, he found q telegram direct.
Ing him to open the box and he
would find the address on the in
side. He opened it with moist
brow and trembling fingers, and
found himself-oh, horror!-sold!
TIE enclosed documents transmit
ting the box from one agent to the
another, explained to poor Smith
the whole give-away; so, with
shower of curses upon Pridham, he
returned to Los Angeles with his
precious box to be numerically
chaffed. Then Agent Pridham tel
egraphed to Mr.. Mosher at Cotton
that friend of his, Nir. Jones,
would arrive in Cotton in a night
or two, intending to sojourn there
for his health; that he
desired information as to
hotel accommodations, price
of board, climate, society, scenery
and surroundings. Mr.. Mosher
employed Hank Wagner to write
back a letter, exhaustively descrip.
tive of Cotton, its hotel, Murpby's
seductive smile, the depot, the
Santa Ana, the valley, the shifting
sands, the sage brush, the town OF
San Bernardino, its hotels, news.
papeis, churches, artesian foun-
tains, sparkling streams, une.
qualled climate, POLITICALLY pictur-
esque scenery, etc. Tue letter
wound up by informing Mr.. Prid.
ham that Mr.. Mosher would wait |
upon Mr.. Jones at the depot, in a
hack imported from San Ber.
DardinS for the auspicous occasion,
in which to convey the distin.
guished visitor to his hotel. Prid-
BAN replied: "All right; many
thanks; Jones worthy of all your
attention." The evening came,
and with it Mr.. Mosher, accom-.
panied by Hank Wagner, in a
stylish coach and two, to the depot,
but no Mr.. Jones appeared. Mr..
Mosher wondered, Hank Wag-
oner swore like q trooper, and
hurled anathemas on the heads of
both Pridham and Jones. The
coach was sent to the stable aud
Mr.. Mosher proceeded to distribute
the contents of the express nag.
Among other packages was a neat
little box, addrtssed: al. q
Mosher, Cotton" Hank opened
the box, and on the inside of the
lid found this inscription in bold
characters:
"THIS IS MR.. JONES AND BABY.n
Mosher tore away the covering
and found an artificial rnau about
n foot in length, and of repulsive,
s'beetle.browedn physiognomy and
covered with rags, staring at him
from the bottom of the box, while |
( nj v1r n tho vsvr, IF ho inta
ture tramp rested little wax |
baby, with its mouth staring, wide
open. Mr.. Mosber swooned, nor
did he recover until Hank Wagon.
or had burned under his nose a
whole file OF his preserved
witticisms from the Semi. Iropic.
Mosher and Hank then endeavored
to hoax our agent here, Bob Blow,
but be was too smart. He pretend
ed to be taken in, but wondered
at the name Jones; it was rather
con1mOn-too common. Moffat of
San Fernando, was also as bad
ly sold as Mosher and Wagner. He
drove to the depot for Mr.. Jones in
nobby carriage, well lined with
wine bottles, aud was-sold. In
fact, every agent on the route was
ridleuIously sold but Blow; he
didn't bite. A better sustained
hoax along such long line is not
on record. We forgot to add that
about one hundred letters of cores
pondence of the different agents ac-
conpanied Mr.. Jones on his trav-
els In his box. They should be ed
tied by Hank Waggoner.-San
Bernardino Times.