Keowee courier. [volume] (Pickens Court House, S.C.) 1849-current, 1882-11-23
The Give Away Game.
HOW EASILY AN AMERICAN CROWD CAN
BE DUpED-A STREET FAKIR'S
EXPOSE.


"Do you know" said man who Was
selling jeweIry from dry goods box to
reporter, ',hat the Americans arc the
easiest humbugged of any in tho world?
it is true and have helped to humbug
them about as much as the average man"
Somebody hud just been reading an account
of tho Louisville lottery drawing which
brought forth This speech.
Cant you tell US some of your ex-
pcrience 10 that liuc?" asked man near.
"Well, you would luugh to know what
fools people make of themselves sometimes
About two years ago was down 10 Bruins
wick, where saw fellow running u per.
fect|y square game, but whicE was the
most out and out steal ever heard of. His
plum was simple, and hundreds of the very
best people of the town lucked to give him
q trial. lie rentec store and put show
case across the colntcr in the centre. 10
the show case he had, know, my hat full
Of ten and twenty dollar gold coins, piled
in heup in one corner, and in the other
about The same sized pile of silver dollars.
outfit BY paying half dollar man had
one throw with the dice. If he threw six
SKIES he took the entire pile Of gold; if he
threw six nccs he was entitled to all the
silver. Of course no one ever threw ull
the skies, neither was it possible to get the
aces TO como all IL bunch. A man
might as well expect to get struck by
lightuing from cIowdIcss sky at nounday
as to throw six aces; it is almost an i'm
possibility, that's all. Well. the fellow
nude several hundred dollars and lett
"Did you ever hear Of how easy it is to
fool man with soap?' continued the
tulkcr. ''We street men know that as an
old story, Of course. was down to Troy,
Ala, several months ugo when u fellow
come aloug almost strapped He went to
u grocery store. bought lew burs of this
transparent soap, cut it into small pieces
about The size Of ones thumb. wrapped it
in coorcd tissue paper very neatly and
then covered the package with tin foil
sprinkling the whole with ho:.!c of
cologne TO give it a good emcll Well sir,
that fellow got on box and soon gathered
crowd BY some nice talking, and proposed
to take out oil tho grease from hats, coats,
80 that could be brought 10 The first
case presented was the city marshal, who
walked up with great spot on his coat
which he wanted taken out The fellow
carried sponge well saturated with benz
zluc anu arpico, which of itself will take
out most anything, and by using hit of
the sunp soon had the marshull's coat en-
tirely free from grouse. That started the
soap sales, and 10 two or three hours, 1t
being Saturday and crowd in town, the
soap mau had sold s3G worth, nearly oil Of
which was clear profit
Stopping to draw long breath the
jcweIry man continued his Interesting story
III tell You you can humhug anybody
am not unlike the rest of the world. |
believe would bite a. my own tricks if I
could only get in the crowd"
"Whlle | was ut Brunswick, Ca, some
time ogo | took revenge oD the town BY
playing what We term the give away
racket 1t is mighty foe thing to play,
but very dangerous one 10 some localities
hud been using a big umbrella, large
enough to oovcr fifty people, when ono
night on the street crowd of sailors, led
on by some of the town boys, threw rotten
eggs ut the umbrella and broke up the
crowd. Then 1 resolved on the give away
racket A fellow has to be mighty careful
about working it or hc will get caught out.
1t can only be played once in a town.
"The way to do it is this: Get lot Of
fine gold rings which cost about dollar
dozen aud propose to be advertising some
big gold concern 10 New York. l onlled
mine tho great brazcd gold Of San Fran
cisco, stated that would show the crowd
thing or two, and soon goot them interested.
First, | made a speech in which stated
my business; then l commenced to offer
the rings at uny price from two cents up,
telling them they could not be bought tor
less than four dollars apiece at a jewellers.
l let OUT about twenty rings at about two
cents, and then asked everybody who had
bought rings to hold them up. Instantly
every ring was 10 tho air. Now said l