Morning journal and courier., 1889-11-15
ATA CIRCUS TICK RT OFFHos.
Some of the Ways In which TickS
Sellers are Able to Pay for TheI
LOba.


Sellers are Able to Pay for Their
Jobs.
from the New York SUM-
"About year ago." said veteran of the
ring, IT was with circus travelling through
the West. A more arrant set of thieves I
have never seen than those with this show.
They were all swindlers, and they seemed to
be glad of 1t.
'To begin, one fellow paid fifty dollars a
month for the privilege Of selling tickets.
For the privilege. mind you, and as he had
to pay his own expenses, he had to steal fifty
dollars from the public before he commenced
to make any money. He had to make a
good many mistakes in order to come out
even, but he always managed to be from two
to three hundred dollars ahead at the end of
each month. The amount depended on the
amount of business done by the show, for it
is hard to make very many profitable mis-
takes except in rush.
"The great Londen show was a small af
fair and stayed from two days to week in
place, and charged ten cents for admission.
You sec 1t Ii a great deal harder to make
change for ten cent tickets than for tickets
selling for twenty-five and fifty cents. In
the latter case the ticket seller never has to
hand back more than two coins when chang
| lug y OOkkhI OE 1885, WuAko Ill bh0 AOEuoE 10
has to hand from tive to four coins back,
and not so many people offer the exact
change. This particular ticket seller was
what the proprietor Of the circus called chain
lightning. He was smart fellow and he
was aware Of 1t. He woald sit in the ticket
wagon aud when there was rush he would
make errors with a precision and to such
fifty cents would get the proper amount of
change. Most of the people whe were swim
died did not notice tho difference. Some of
them who did notice It would not create q
row for q small amount in such . crowd.
But some of them would kick, and in that
case they would receive the proper change,
accompanied by such pleasant and hearty
smile and apology that they could not feel
aggrieved at the attempt to cheat them.
Whenever guy kicks up rumpus,' he
would say, 4 allus gives him the right
change, and pertends Ii was all q mistake,
and that there never was a straighter man
than me. Thet is thor best way ter treat
bluff him he will raise such song and
dance thet every blamed guy in Their lot will
tumble ter yer game, and will watch to see
If yer tries ter hold ont anything. Seer
"But the easiest Victims were young fell
lows who had girls along. Az the ticket
seller put It, They are just pie You take
young fellow with girl on each arm and
-
circus man regards as a beuAden duty to
fleece, and he performs that duty oheerfully.
The poer fellow is anxious to appear in the
best light before the girls, and when he gets
his ticket he presents ten or twenty dol
lar bill.
"sThirty cents from twenty" says the
seller. "There 10 your tickets and here Is
your CHANGE and nineteen dollars and sew
enty cents is carefully counted from one Of
! the showman's hands to the other and back
again. Il believe that is all right he says,
as he counts 1t the second time. 1t is all
right, and he pours the change into the out
| stretched hand of the swain, who is anxious
to treat monetary matters of little impor-
tanoe. and he drops the silver into his poek-
ct. He goes on his way rejoicing and feeling
| that no circus man can beat him. But the
ticket seller il satisfied, ss he is two dollars
| ahead, having deftly 'palmed' that amount
when he pretended to pour what was the
| correct change into the hand of the man
| with the girls.
| "Anothsrlbolder scheme is for a man to