The Abilene reflector. [volume] (Abilene, Kan.) 1883-1888, 1885-08-13
JEwELRY iMPOSiTIONS.
Tricks of Trade Which Have Buyers at
Their Mercy-A Few Hints.

Did jobber to Tribune reporter. ''are
endless and vary according to the style
in vogue. Broadly, it may be said that
there is more chance for fraud and
imposition in heavyweight goods than
in light. There is certain class of
manufacturers at work all the time
producing goods for working the pawn
brokers. In New York. Philadelphia,
and other large Northern and Eastern
cities the circulation of these goods is
much greater than in Chicago. as the
pawnbroking business here is of much
| less rushing description. Sometimes
I pawnbrokers buy quantities of these
I goods in bulk, but as rule they are
( pledged in single pieces at busy hours.
7 The pawnbroker. whether he discovers
/ the imposition or not. does not eventu-
! ally lose. If the stuff is good enough to
impose upon him. no layman can dis
tinguiSh it from the honeStly-made
article, and he disposes of it out of his
window or at auction at the full rate.
No article, large or small, escapes the
attention Of these bogus manufacturers,
but chains, lockets, pendants. and rings
are the great specialties. The whole
production may be roughly divided into
three classes filled edged
and mixed The filed method is
generally brought to bear on
the heavier goods. From 1875 to 1882,
when heavy chains of cable and bar
pattern were worn by both sexes, about
l ~ 0fo do
were more or less bogus. These chains
were made by the usual filled process
that is. thin plate of gold was welded
to the base substratum before the chains
were fashioned. In one link-the
/ marked one-the bar and swivel were
almost always made solid. After finish
ing they were thickly electrotyped and
FURNISHED to make them of a uniform
color. They were then 'sweated,' two
or three dozen being shaken up for an
hour or two in a large chamois leather
bag. This rounded off the sharp angles
| and gave them the appearance of
having been worn for years. There
was no loss of gold in the operation. as
the leather bags were afterwards burnt
in furnace and every particle re-
covered by the mercury amalgam pro-
cess. In lOckets and pendants impOSi-
ton is very common, as it is much
more difficult to discover in these goods.
Not only pawnbrokers are overrun with
them but the most respectable store
keepers often sell them for the genuine
article without any guilty knowledge
As the interior of these goods is either
soldered fast or hidden by the glasses
and framework it is unusual to examine
the back. Even if the backs are eX-
amined, as in well-made goods they
have a tolerably thick gold plate.
From their shape they can not be filed
and it is very difficult to lay open the
fraud. OF course, when a jobber in
buying a large quantity has any suspi-
cion he resorts to boring the sample, but
it is very unusual as it utterl y ruins
the piece acted upon. 1t is certain
that fifty per cent. of all the lockets and
pendants sold as solid gold are of this
description, and among them some of
the finest and most massive-loOking
specimens. This method is also much
in use in the manufacture of so-called
gold pencil-cases and penholders.
There are two or three firms in Provi-
dence, r. l., which manufacture large
quantities of sleeve and collar buttons
and ladies' sleeve-links on this princi-
pie. The edge system is brought into
requisition for different class of arti-
cles. In all lightweight goods such as
fancy-stone rings, plain and band rings
from three and one-half to six penny
weights in weight, earrings, brooches,
sets, lace-pins, garter and suspender
buckles, scarfrings, small watch-chain
charms, chatelaine-chain pendants, and
in all articles of a light description
this principle is worked to advantage.
1t is much more prevalent than the
"flled' system at present. The greater
portion of these goods are made, for I'M
scrupulous jobbing houses and general
ly sold to country store-keepers and
auctiOneers-
1.-The last main division in these goods
is the mixed This system of imposi-
ton is less sweeping and profitable than
the two others. All classes of goods.
both heavy and light weight, are made
up in this way. The whole thing con-
sists of making different portions of the
same article of greatly varying qualities
of gold and selling the whole piece at
the trade price of the finest part. In
chains, for instance, two or three of the
links usually tested are made of fourteen
or eighteen carat. The other links are
composed of gold from six to eight
carat. The whole chain is then sold for
fourteen or eighteen carat and as the
inferior gold is silver alloyed. and the
better mixed with baSer metal. the whole
chain wears uniform and of one color
for years.
''These three main lines almost cover
the whole ground, though there are
many combinations of the different sys-
TENS. and new dodges are continually
coming forward"
''In what way can man judge and
best protect himself when in need of
anything in your line?'
THAT is rather a hard conundr,rn
under the present condition Of the trade.
The great desideratum in the iewelry
business at present is a stamp common
to the whole country OF some official and
reliable kind. The only thing approx
mating to this are the private trade
marks of some well-known manufacture
erers of old standing. These have a
certain degree of authority in the trade.
but from unavoidable causes are not
nearly as much respected as an official
stamp would be- So many of the job
bers and storekeepers are such poor
judges that many firms who have done
a legitimate business for years. and have
thereby gained quite a reputation can
not resist the temptation to aeteriorate
the quality of their goods. OF course
it ultimately is found ont. but before