National Republican. (Washington City (D.C.)) 1872-1888, 1884-10-18
PROFESSIONAL 1MPosrERs.
Tho Confession OF n sharper who
Got Rich Soliciting Contributions
for Suffering Humanity.

week or so ago man went into q
business house in an interior town and
asked fora contribution help to support the
striking minera Of the Hooking valley, of
Ohio. Ho said the men we're destitute,
and any contribution, whether in old
clothes or money, would be acceptable
The merchant who was addressed thought
he saw something familiar in the coun-
tenance of the collector,and he decided
to investigate, so he invited the man into
an adjacent saloon. and after few drinks
had warmed the collector mp, the incr-
chant said, 81 have seen you before. Were
you not canvassing for the Hood sufferers
last Year," Tho man admitted that no
was, when the merchant asked, "Aro You
not professional canvasscr2 Don't you
canvass for sufferers just to make living
for yoursolf2" The man finally admitted
that he did, and after taking an other drink
he was induced to tell his story as fol-
lows:
We'll" said he, after draining tho last
drop in his glass, ~ sec you are onto me,
and might as we'll own up and jump tho
town. The facti is, / belong to o family of
four brothers who make soliciting for
charity business. We commenced
soliciting for drought sufferers in Kansas,
years ago, and it paid so well that wo
have kept in the business, working any
racket that will appeal to the sympathies
of the people. For five years, off and on,
we have solicited aid for Kansas sufferers
on one pretext or another, either drought,
grasshoppors, prairie fires, or some
thing. Kansas has boon Godsond
to us. Two years ago we worked tho
people Of the east for the grasshopper suf-
ferers Of Minnesota, and floods, cyclones,
&c, have kept us in business ever since.
1t pays very we'll. We take what We can
get, preferring money, but not kicking at
anything. If we get old clothes that arc
not good enough to sell at second hand
stores, we throw them away or give them
to somo poor family near where wo get
Thorn. We sent some clothes to Minnesota,
a few years ago, bnt anything that was
good enough to sell we sold, and tho
money we put down in our stock. 1t
is as easy business as l know of,
and l and my brothers have accumu-
lated competency. We have farms
and money at interest. We are just put
ting in our time during the dull season
1 on this Hooking valley coal minors
racket, because we read in tho papers
that thoro was much suffering there, and
people who read of IL think wo are right
| from tno scene OF tnc Buuerlng, anu most
people give something right Off without
asking any questions. We worked the
country for Kansas until the people Of
Kansas kicked. They said it was wrong
to give the people of tho country to un-
derstand that Kansas was always suffer.
ing, when such was not the case, and they
threatened to have us arrested as frauds, SC
we let up on poor Kansas. We are
just worrying along now until next
year, when we expect tho cholera here
and 1t will be easy to raise all tho money
we want. Wetried to raise some money for
cholera sufferersin France, but people told
us that France could take care Of the few
sufferers, but to wait till the cholera got
here, and there would be some sense in
asking subscriptions. So about mex
April we expect good business"
The business man was so indignant a
the fraud that he was preparing to kick
the collector out of the saloon and send a
policeman after him, when one of the
brothers came in and called the drunken
collector out, and they went around 8
corner and were lost in the crowd.