The Logan County banner. [volume] (Logan, W. Va.) 1889-1903, 1889-10-03
SHORT CHANGE MEN.


SHORT CHANGE MEN.
How the Unsuspicious Are Swaa-
died at the Circus.
Making Money ny Changing Twenty-Dol-
lar siiis~only one Man in a Thou
sand Will Count His Change
y Three Times.
Nearly everybody knows more or
leSsab6ut all the attendant features Of
3 q circus-the side show, the horse
tent, the cooking tent, the dressing
room, the red-lemonade man, and the
peanut fiend; but not many people,
even among the foxy old-timers who
have patronized circuses for forty
years. know any thing about the
d. ''short-change man." His victims are
many, but they prefer not to trumpet
tlrcir fish-like quality from the house.
tops. They swallow their chagrin and
keep silent, while they economic In a
number OF ways to get even on the
se.=,aae'atesaal tthatthe short=change man has
4 number of years ago ran across
ono of the most accomplished Short
change workers in this country and
got well acquainted with him. He
==diantsaspect mo of being a newspaper
man, and in the three months that /
knew him didn't enlighten him. He
grew very confidential and chatty, and
gave away to me the innermost secrets
OF his craft. lie was q little, slim fell
low. OF Irish extraction, and as bright
. and sharp as u new needle. He had a
way of fitting his head back and look
ing at folks with half-closed eyes,
while he smiled slightly, that was
clever enough to make great hit in
dramatic creation. It4was perfectly
fetching, but the fine contempt he had
for the suckers" whom his kind bled,
and the way he had Of speaking OF
thenft was much more so. 1t win
whehIkHew- him and he, Mas
RESTING unttlthe season opened up.-I
approached him O. dozen times to get
him TO tell me all about the short
change act before he became pliable.
He would take a coin and palm 1t as
cleverly as Mr.. Hermann and laugh
and turn away. But one evening he
opened his heart to me.
| had been talking about the ..tele-
sg9taphn method OF making short
change. and he spoke up and said,
quite scornfully.
That's no good! There's no money
in that. You can get only fifty cents
orone dollar out OF that There's lots
ofways Stronger than that!"
/ asked him what they were.
WELL" he said. taking a roll of
small bills, mostly ones and twos, out
OF his pocket, they're worked this
way; you do it with the long green"
He smoothed the bills out straight
and caressed them affectionately.
''Ah! when those new ones we're
first issued" he said, 'the boys worked
all the banks in the country for them.
They were the best graft the. boys ever
see they look just n five
or ten if you don't show the hgure.
" Well, this is the way the boys take
the money away from the suckers. :
You've noticed q lot of hustlers in the
crowd selling tickets and saving peo-
Pile the trouble Of getting in the jam
ut the ticket wagon, haven't youp
:. Well, you naturally think they are
hired by the proprietor OF the show,
because they sell tickets at the regu-
lar price. But they are not: They
pay one hundred cents on the dollar
for every ticket they sell. and they
dcpend on their ability to swindle the
= buyers cut OF a few dollars now and
then for their profit.
"A young man with his best girl
comes along-or ans old man alone, or
a solid business man with two three.
OF his family; it doesn't matter who 1t
is. they're an victims-a he secs a
great crush around the ticket wagon.
There isn't much chance OF getting a
ticket there in less than ten minutes,
and here at his elbow is young
man with ..Choice reserved seats
at regular prices! How manyp We
are here tos relieve the rush @at
the wagon! No extra charge,
sir! How manyp'kand be says. Two
please. which. assuming that the man
buys reserved seats, would be TWO dol
lars. Hegivcs the young man ten dol
lar bill, OF may be twenty dollars-if
there's any place on earth where q
man will flash big bill, and where
: he hadn't ought to. it's at a circus.
Wen say he offers him a twenty dollar
bill this time ior the sake Of the better
illustration Of the story. The young
man takes it, puts it into his pocket,
draws out handful Of bills, takes a
ten, a two and five ones, and hands
tbe1ump to the buyer OF seats. 1t is
one dollar short. but the man has
handled it so quickly and counted
eiehteen~dollars out Of it 80 easily that
r ofteutimes the man takes it and goes,
but the fakir is sore II he does not.
i he isa cautious and knowing party
Nho3is dead onto the tricks Of these
scheus sharps,' it suits the short
change man exactly, for then he will
= carefully count his change and says =
~ - ." Here young mani You're one
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