, 1885-10-31
COUGHING GREENLES.
TRICKS AND pooGEs OF THE clRcus
HANGeRS-ON.
Tho WeIi-Known PaimIng trick Che 1t
Ing In tts ChsnRe-"B both Eads
Against The Middie''-"F1ip" aud
"Push-H ack"-AvoidIng a Fuss.


fChicago News
@Why, bless your soul, the innocence
Of the average hay-secd granger would
knock spots out of n j.year child City
people are easy enough 10 get away with
ri times. but Jour country jakey takes to
being robbed as natural as n mutton choT
to the grid iron. Just you travel with a
circus rs | have. aud you'll find the pig
cons lock around faster than you can
piuca en-.
in the way back time the scooping was
doae with thimble- rig. three card monte,
sweat cloth aud such like games. bui
they've all got played out, and nowadays
they don't even give Il fellow a little ex-
element for his money. but just rake it
In without his knowing he's lost
IT, There's no end OF ways fol
doing this. Just n chance offers,
but there are several regular standbys
that arc played day after day and don't
fail once In twenty times. One Of these
Is the palming trick. which can be done
by anybody after a little practice. The
sucker hands you n bill for 90. say, and
you count the change all right into your
left hand. taking pains TO ave him SCI
you count IL Then you turn your hano
over aud empty the change into his hand
and he naturally puts it into his pocket
without q second counting. while the fac
is he's a h%alf-dollar short, as you havt
captured that half dollar in the palm o.
your left hand.
sIDF-sHOw TRICKS.
There's another way of making q
small squeeze that's all the time being
used at the box. oillce or the doors of tho
d e.shows. A man calls for two tickets
at 60 cents each, well say, and pass up 8
- bill The ticket-man says hold out
yatr luul utra tfgEhfa I'll On. ahfeEan
feed. -. -. -. 50, next Now, tht
man has got his tickets and So In silver Of
notes, but the chioken-feed amounts tC
only 80 or 3j cents In nickles and dimes.
The crowd pushes him on; he sees the
tickets and dollars are all right. and In
his hurry to get into the tent never thinks
to count the small change This is about
the only trick the door-men or wagon-bo,
chaps Of a snide management can AFFORD
TO play. but when the crowd is big theJ
often make more than S25 on II per day
for each ticket seller.
Every man in the gouge-racket ganl
Is a pretty good judge of human nature
and from long practice Is able to pick oul
a green horn at sight With such a fell
low they try the dodge that seems best
suited to his case. and the three methods
most usually adopted are as follows. One
is called both ends against the middle.
add Is only worked on u greeny who Is II
n big rush. and who is so Hurried that he
don't know what he Is doing. He passei
over Il 81 bill and the scalper hands hin
the ticket, which costs 81 say, and three
81 bills II says quite sharp. as though
lac has no time fooling here you are. sir
Your check. two. three. four dollars, and
your ticket five. On that deal the
scalper makes 81. for In nine cases out OF
ten. having sized their man right, the
sucker ANS the change into his pocket.
and slides of without an idea but that
its all square
".tlr" AND "PUsH-BAoK."
when IA chap looks more caution,
they give him the double or nip Thi,
is "A pretty game. and II played right will
capture most anybody. In return for 6
3 bill the scalper hands over the ticket
and the right amount Of small change,
and says. Let's see. still owe you 81.
liere they are-one. Two, three, four,
counting the money under the mans eyes,
aud then folding up the notes aud hand
ing them to him. The man really only
gets -. for the scalper has folded one of
the notes between his fingers so that when
he counts both ends OF that note repre-
seats a dollar. while the man. having seen
the counting, puts the roll into his pocket
without orening 1t
ne boss game, however. Is known &c
the tra ie ns push back. and is only
plnyed by men who have practiccd 1t till
they are slick as eels. The sucker come
up to a scalper. who is standing around
with tickets in his hand for sale. and
forks over "A So, $40. or 500 bill. as the
case may be. The scalper takes the bill
in his right hand. In which the tickets
are. anl goes down into his left pocket
Tor change. bringing up some, but not
enough. Take this back. says he. i
can I change IT, Haven't you something
imlllerf The sucker puts the bill back
M his pocket all crumpled up as II wa
hauded to him. and either brings out
enough silver to pay for the ticket oi
SAYS he hasn't anything smaller. In the
latter case the scalper saws all right, you
lool. like an honest man and I'll trust you
with the tickets. III have some change
before you come out and you can pay me
then on goes the sucker. tckled 10
death, and that's the last Of him. Now.
the beauty Of the business is that the
scalper had a 81 bill orumpled up In his
hand under the tickets. and he made that
change places with the big bill while he
was apparently looking for change.
Once in a while n man finds he's been
swindled aud begins TO make a kick about
IL but Il never results In a row nowadays,
for the scalper is always ready to square
his man rather than have a fuss. This
last don't pay. for 1t attracts too much at
tention and spells the further working Of
the little games