The Opelousas courier., 1889-04-13
-...Tev suNco sTEERERs.

y s tbe street as an old friend, has
aid so often that one would nat
D nv suppose that that is all that can
:. rsIsted on the subject:
y. .b;s il not so. The rural dis
- have many bunco-steerers, who
" i wait for the urbanite who settles
tsa blooming lea to squander the
nnuars Of New York in New Jersey.
These bunco-steerers are innocent
hing vokels, who don't appear to be
ae".s,oeked with everyday intelli-
,.uos and no city maj would ever inn
Sne them capable of t~ieecing him.
THEW don't step up and say: Are
~ Mr.. Smith, of Rochester," and fol-
;ow 4 up BY inquiring after the health
of the family. 49,.
They po to the barber-shop, that
..,,ndless bureau of information in
avery town, and ask:
.vyho is that man who just moved
into the yellow house on Brick HIP"
.Bunkardr' replies the barber, as he
civas his victim aspirited upper cut.
Than the bunco-steerer mounts his
,.;lts and struggles through the in
o.yradined mud to the residence ofGIr.
Bunkard.
After the door is opened, he says:
as Mr.. Bunkard in?"
And when he is told that MI. Bunk
srd il in, and Mr.. Bunkard appears,
he rural bunco-steerer asks:
aAh. Mr.. Bnnkard, would you like
b. buy some hickory ut five dollars per
cord?n
AS q matter of fact, hickory Is go
scarce that carriage makers use ash
when they make hickory wheels; but
Mr.. Bunkard does not know this. He
would know how to take the farmer in
In a Wall street grain-pool in which
here is no grain; but when it comes
10 frewood, he doesn't even know that
/. hickory is superior to pine. So he or
ders two cords of hickory, and in the
course OF a few days receives one cord
Of chestnut, for which he pays ten
dollars.
Then the bunco-steerer goes to tho
aOrist and tells him what an easy VIC
lin Mr.. Bunkard is; and in a few days
The florist goes around and sells Mr..
Bunkard q dozen onions for Roman
hyacinths. But he first dips them into
bot water, that they may not develop
and expose the swindle.
In the spring-time, these creatures
who live on the fat of the city man, como
around TO rake up the place, and re-
move the dead leaves and ashes. They
make q bargain to do it for fifteen dol
lars. Mr. Bunkard thus thinks he is
getting a bargain, and he orders them
70 go ahead. They start at eight in
the morning, and have the job finished
BY noon-time; and when he comes
home at four they r waiting for their
money.
After q day or two, Mr.. Bunkard is
told by a plumber that he ought to
hare his place cleaned up. But he
doesn't suspect that the first cleaners
up purposely left it in such state that
he would have to employ others. So
The plumber sends his brother up, and
he gathers ten dollars for doing the
job that was only worth five to start
on.
In the summer, a man comes and
offers to cut the grass for two dollars
per day. and he purposely runs Mr..
Bu1kard's lawn mower over stones and
breaks it beyond repair. Then he rec.
onlI1ends Mr.. Bunkard to get a Para
celsius mower down in the village, al
CroWley's; and If he does so, Crowley
gives the bunco-laborer a good com.
mission; and whether he does or not,
the laborer secures a days employ.
ment raKing the stones out of the
grass.
When he renders his bill, he adds
Day that he never put in on the place:
and II Mr.. Bunkard mentions it, he
says It was a rainy day, and that he
spent IL chopping up barrels for kin
ding wood in the cellar. Then he, the
Dnnco-steerer, has the expressmau
drive of the roadway a foot or SC ant
mack the lawn to pieces, to create ;
fresh job.
IN the autumn, Mr.. Bunkard is wait
ca upon by a man who tells him tina
Y he wants a green lawn next summer
ne must have some fertilizer put on
lhen he suggests that a blind drain b.
put down the middle of the road, Il
Keep It from being washed up agains
me house and down the cellar win
aow After he has left with an order
ms brother calls on Mr.. Bunkard
under q different name, to see ii he cal
seli him a barrel of cider. The cider
winch Is short in measure, is put il
.ne cellar to develop into vinegar
Mr. Bunkard is told that it will b.
vinegar in three months, and tn
sender leaves a small hole in the bar
Eel 60 that it, is soon empty, and Mr.
Dankard never learns that it original.
contained water.
And in the winter it is just the same
~ ct that season Mr.. Bunkard EN-
ploys q man to care for his furnace
sna he leaves all the drafts on an,
ourns up all the coal he can in the in
serest OF the coal dealer; and occs
sonaliy lets it go out at night to freez
Der.
ana %, year after year, the countr
ounco-steerer works his little game
Mad has the arf m aonoaol hia art /