San Antonio daily light. [volume] (San Antonio, Tex.) 1886-1907, 1890-09-30

Few eeks-Like Many Sche,ass To-
day, IL Was a Big SwindIe-Ths London
Fine Art Association.
One dismal afternoon during the fall of
1876 three friends, all of whom had been in
the army and whose pecuniary condition
may be described by the expressive epithet of
''busted," wers lounSing in the reading room
of then very fast London club. One Of
them proceeded to PROFOUND the perplexing
question as to what his friends considered
would be the termination to their present
financial embarrassments
Our subscriptions will be due shortly, and
heaven only knows where the stuff is to come
from, as | feel certain my uncle won't stump
up. He has on many previous occasions ex-
pressed his emphatic opinion that under the
circumstances 1t would be more becoming for
| me to obtain some employment, instead Of
swelling, as he chooses to call 1t, about the
West End and am really afraid mon affaire
with the Jones-Brown girl is Off"
He had got so far with this exciting subject
when one of his companions interrupted him
in Lis usual jerky style. 81 saw brother Bill
last night. He says he has struck a good
thing at last Wants only little ready to
make fortune. / suppose, however, it is a
wild scheme which will never come to any
thing He asked me the silly question il
could get any one to go into it with him."
On the principle of the drowning man
catching at straw, the gentleman who had
expressed the very reasonable doubt as to the
forthcoming of the club subscriptions pro-
posed, with his habitual extravagance, that
they should take a cab down to the Temple
and interview Mr.. Bill, who was barrister
without any legal business.
THE SCHEME PROPOSED
The proposition was carried men, con.
That abominabe mode of conveyance "a
| London omnibus, was substituted for ham
| som, and in half an hour Elm Tree Court was
| invaded by three thirsty and impecunious
men.
"We lar" said the spokesman of the
| party, that you have got the idea Of the
century. Let us know all about it, as if it is
any good can find fellow to lend me some
money to put into it,"
Mr.. Bill compressed his lips with that abom-
| Unable judicial affectation so common among
young lawyers, and remarked with as much
gravity as if he were opening an address to q
| jury in murder case:
You see that the British public magines
that it is fond of art-and pictures, and ali that
sort of thing, and nine-tenths don't know a
print from an engraving Now propose to
sell Landseer's and Wilkes and works by
other popular painters. However, a bait is
| wanted to make them bite. | therefore in
| tend to issue a coupon, which will look in
| tensely important, redeemable within a GER
| tain date, emitting the sender to the benefit
| of getting what choose to call an engraving,
and which on the face Of it appears to be a
| marvel of cheapness. The idea is original,
| and it's not. / don't know whether it came
| to me in an apocalyptic dream or whether
| overheard somebody talking about something
| of the same nature If any Of you can raise
| a hundred pounds it will be enough, as can
make arrangements with a friendly adver-
| Using agent to do the needful in that direc-
| ton, which will be the principal outlay"
THE LONDON FINE ART ASSOCIATION.
The matter was discussed far into the fol-
| lowing morning, and the result was that with
| a very slender borrowed capital the London
| Fine Art association started on its gay career
| 4 few days after. From the very first it was
| a remarkable financial success as the money
flowed in through the post so quickly that 1t
proved economical to pay man to sell the
postage stamps without discount TO the trades
people.
The outlay was a trife and the profits at
least 400 per cent. The principal aim of the
association was stated to he from time to
| time to issue genuine works of art in order to
cherish and foster among the middle and
lower classes that love Of real engravings
which they SO much prize. 1t was further
stated that it was earnestly hoped that the
system would entirely superSede the spurious
| imitation Of engravings
The advertisement generally filed a col
umn, and informed the public that the asso-
citation having the exclusive right would,
previous to destroying the plate, issue at the
cost of production limited number of genu-
inc copyright engravings from the original
steel plate of such and such celebrated pict-
ures Then followed a very elaborate de-
scription of the picture, and the very import
ant coupon with full Instructions that it
should be cut out and sent with "A poStoffice
order for various sums, as the case might be,
accompanied with full address to secure safe
delivery, for which special arrangements had
been made for its transmission freeR charge
At the end it was stated that the usual retail
price Of the engraving was about ten times
that asked by the Ii.le Art association.
Under these auspices England was flooded
with copies of well known paintings by cele-
brated artists
As many years have now elapsed it viii be
10 breach IF confidence to state that these
r!'inCS, for that is what they amounted to,
we're Obtained wholesale from gentleman of
the Hebrew persuasion He had in his pos
session the old and well worn plates of the
original enGrGyings, and was well satisfied
with his part Of the contract. which was to
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