The Arizona sentinel., 1885-12-26
AN EYE-oPENER.

The Shares of Vicious Swindlers Who Seek
 Their Victims Among Western Farm
 CTS.
 ''Never sign paper for stranger, is a bit of advice we have often given, and the more we hear of tricks of swind- lers in country places, the more wisdom we see in these seven words.
 Most of the Western States, especially Indiana and Iowa, are infested by sev- eral sets of swindling ngrascals who should, whenever met with, beintrodueed to the watchdog or the calaboose. We have several reports of their operations, and all represent them as slick-looking, glib tongued, plausible fellows. They rep resent themselves as agents for com bined corn-sheller and feed grinder made in Cleveland, Ohio. Their method oi swindling is always substantially the same; though there are, of course, vari' ations in details. Here, in brief, is what farmer in Knox County, Indiana, says of the gang who tried to cheat him: "One morning a slick-looking fellow drove up to my place, represented him. self as the agent of splendid combined corn-sheller and feed-grinder, for which he wanted me to take the local agency. It would sell very readily and would make a good thing of it. On my em' phatic refusal, he begged me to allow him to set up one on my farm so that, while canvassing for it in the neighbor. hood, he might send farmers to examine it, and that I could use it and make what I could out of it, and that it would not cost me a cent. To this consented. Then he showed me a card on which was printed in small type, the follow ing:
 In the County of Knox, State of Indiana, worth E. per acre, clear of all incum' brances.
 He asked me to sign my name at the bottom of it, merely as an acknowledg- ment that had some property, and 1 did so. He then drove of, and said the machine would be here in 6 few days.
 A few days later I received from the manufacturers postal card advisingme that the machine had been shipped to my address, and urging me to remove it immediately on it's arrival, to avoid charges. About a week later another man drove up and asked to see the ma- chine. I told him that it had not yet arrived. He said he had come to settle for it. told him had nothing to settle for; but he insisted that owed the firm for it. On my emphatic denial, he pulled out a card. which read as follows: via E. & T. H. R. R-, to - Station, Knox County, State of Indiana, one combined corn -sheller and feed grinder; for all further company seven-eIghths the retail price when a sale is made by me. I am to receive the combined mill when 1t arrives, and pay the freight, which the company is to allow me on settlement. Retail price of combined mill is $20O each, eXtra-set ot grinding burrs, s each. 1 own in my own name. l60 acres of land in the County of Knox, State of In- cumbrancesI exceptSa mortgage of =. Any verbal understanding differing from the above will not be recognized.
 And to this my name was signed. I denied very forcibly that I had ever signed any such order. The stranger declared that he had my obligation, and wanted me to sign notes for four hun dred dollars to pay for the purchases 1 had made. I asked him to let me see the card bearing my name. After a world of persuasion, he held it up, and I snatched it from him and pocketed it, and, pulling out my revolver, told him to go at once OF would make riddle of him. He begged tor mercy and im- plored me not to expose him. I told him I would show him up, and that if he didn't go at once he would leave the township with coat of tar and feathers. He went, and I have seen none of the gang since.
 How are such swindles perpetrated? Why, bless you, there is nothing easier. The paper offered for signature has al- ways been prepared beforehand with a special view to swindling the signer. Generally it is so folded that only a part of it is exposed to view, though there are no signs of folding. Frequently it is in the following innocent-looking manner: