, 1879-02-23

Is.
! decoy-subscription business. It is q commo
practice in every cause relying upon cor
tribution for support, and has become 8
general that the press should severely cor
demn it as bold fraud upon the conlmunit
by which money is obtained from the peopl
under false pretenses. The New York Time
has done good service in exposing it, ant
HE CHICAGO TRIBUNE is prepared to empha
size its comments. It is q species of COT
ruption which has crept into all sorts O
schemes that are dependent upon th'
public purse and have to be supported b,
public appeal. The decoy subscription is 1
device by which man Of influence anc
wealth heads list with large subscription
with the understanding that he will not be
called upon to pay it,-the object beingto gel
the use Of his name, perhaps sometimes with
douceur thrown in, to influence his fellow.
citizens. The device is used in paying oil
church-debts, in endowing Professorships,
in relieving the wants of hospitals and asy-
| 1ums, in building colleges, in placing oil
| kinds Of stock, in starting of concert pros
pectuses, art sales, and subscription books.
It has become q common trick Of the trade,
] and it is time that it should be exposed, and
that people should be warned to scrutinize
subscription-lists very closely, and, when
ever they find one headed with decoys,
which they have signed, to refuse to honor
their subscription, since they are neither
morally nor legally bound by it, The i'm
position hitherto has been easy, for sew
eral reasons In the first place, those
to whom the subscriptions are pre-
sented usually know very little Of the
real merits of the cause, and have no
time to examine into it. Seeing, however,
the names of responsible men at the head of
the List, they take it for granted that it is all
right, or such men would not have signed it,
and they put down their names also without
hesitation. book~agent, for instance, en-
tcrs an office with subscription for somo
new work. The victim may not be q Judge
Of the work at oil, or, if he be, may not have
time to examine it; but he sees at the head
OF the LIST the names Of A and 3, who are
recognized in the community as critical
judges and literary authorities, and, relying
upon them,-thelr subscription in reality be-
ing testimonial to the excellence of the
work,-he puts down his name without ques-
ton. The decoy subscription may have been
made by the subscriber without any inten-
ton to defraud. The agent is usually good
talker.. He works upon weakness Of hui
man nature. He has heard that 4 is an au-
thority, and he aatters him. He assures him
Of tho excellence Of the work or the object.
He does not wish him to consider
himself bound by his subscription,
and he need not take the book |
unless he is so disposed !; but ha would /
ike to have the use of the name Of one who |
stands SO high in the community. A swal-
ows tho bait, and then tho agent has no fur
her difficulty in getting his list filed There
'rs some who sign, as We have said, because
hey rely upon AS judgment and knowledge.
There are others who sign because it is
weakness OF human nature to follow in tho
wake of recognized authorities. The shrewd
'atter-up Of social entertainment will al
rays secure the name Of some leader of So
iety, because he knows that the smaller
ghts will be sure to follow. There are still
theirs who sign because they feel that if the
st should happen to be published they
'ould appear mean if their names were ab |
ant, and comparisons would be instituted
,at would not be very favorable to them.
AL this business. il q bald ,awindle1 ~ ,Tha- |,
ian who heads subscription-list without
~ responsibility attaching to it is guilty of
seating his fellow citizens, and they have
le right, although he may not have intend
any fraud, to break their contract, while ;
'e man who has signed 6ctitiously is bound |
? his signature if the agent holds him to it, I
he only safety in the premises is a rigid t
rutiny of subscription-1ists and demand c
at they shall exactly state the character of ?
9 consideration and Of every condition at
ching to it. Beyond this it is the duty of
cry honest man who is asked to lend the ;<
9 OF his name to any scheme without per Il
nal responsibility. to assume that the Z
hcme is fraud, and politely but firmly h
ow the agent the door. Il
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