Alpena weekly argus. [volume] (Alpena, Mich.) 1871-1893, 1885-04-01
He Tried the Wrong Man.


had just begun to read a copy of the
Christian Advocate when a benevo-
lent-looking, middle-aged man entered
and sat down beside him. For an
hour the young man read his paper,
and the old man watched the tele-
graph poles 60 by. Becoming tired
of this amusement the stranger fished
a halfdozen little pill-boxes out of a
deep pocket in his overcoat and
placed them in his lap. The young
man put away his paper and eyed
his neighbor, who pulled out roll of
bills from his vest pocket, selected a
note, and placed it in one of the pill
boxes.
"Do you suppose you could select
the box containing the bill?" he ask.
ed OF the young man with smile and
a look that seemed to say, "Lct us be
sociable!' -
Don't think I could" laconically
replied the latter, pulling his mus
tache.
The stranger himself picked out
the box, took out the bill, and put a
$40 note in its place. This time,
however, a corner of the bill was left
sticking out after the cover had been
put on the box.
"Now do you think ysu could pick
it outp he said, showing his teeth.
"Of course l could" replied the
young man.
well, if you will give me dollar
l will let you try"
ooh, no, 1 wouldn't do that. You're
not sharp at all. You've left a
corner of that bill sticking out of the
box so any fool could pick it out"
"Why, Of course" said the sharper,
apparently confused by the discovery
"How could l make such blunder p
Thereupon he took out the $40 bill
and put in its place bright, new $40
note. The corner of the bill stuck
out as before, but the man pretended
not to notice it.
"Now will you try it?" he contin-
ued, after wiping his forehead with q
red handkerchief. "Give me a dollar
and take your pick. You've got a
chance to make $40 in clean money"
The young mans face did not show
the least animation at thi, declara-
ton. If there was the beginning OF
a smile hidden under his mustache il
did not reveal itself when he answer.
ed:
"You are stranger to me.
don't want to take $40 out of you; il
wouldn't be gentlemanly in me to dc
so. If we were old friends the case
would be different. But 1 see plainly
you are not used to the wicked ways
of this world. You are not sharp
You have left the corner of that $40
note sticking out of the cover just as
you did the other. You ought to &c
and work on farm awhile, you
ought"
The perspiration poured from the
sharper's forehead. He had caught
a Tartar, and had hard time of it.
toe. The red-headed young man took
the boxes out of his neighbor's hand
and, after returning the $40 note,
said:
Perhaps you would like to try
your hand at picking out the lucky
box? I'll put this $50 bill in this
one and a $40 note in this box. Give
me $5 and you shall try your luck"
The man reluctantly paid over the
money, and after the young man had
shaken up the boxes in his hat, took
up one from which the green corner
of a note appeared. When he had
pulled off the cover he found it con-
tanned only a piece of revenue
stamp. His face fell at the discovery.
"Try it again." said his tormentor.
He tried again, but with no better
luck.
"Take the l0t," laughed the young
man, pouring them out into his
neighbor's lap.
The swindler opened every box,
but not sign of bill appeared.
"Hcre are the bills, safe in my
pocket" said the bright young fellow,
producing the notes from his vest
pocket and shaking them in his neigh
bor's face:
"The next time you want to try
your game OH stranger, don't pick
out a man who is in the same bust
ness as yourself Ia! tn"
The red-hsired youth was an expert
confidence man from 'Frisco.-New
York Sun.
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