Morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven [Conn.]) 1848-1894, 1891-08-04
THE CREDULoUs vIcrImIzED.

|
tive by United States Officers.
| WASHINGTON, D. c., August 9Th
officers connected with the assistant attor
ney generals Office Of the postofice de
partment have succeeded, it is believed
in rendering abortive the attempts of tn
"Home Fascinator Company" of Montrea
to victimize many credulous Americans
This concern, it is stated, publishes (
monthly journal called "The Home Fas
cinator," alleged to be devoted to usefu
knowledge, romance, etc., etc. The
"etc." seemed to cover the greater part Of
the paper and consisted of an advertise
| ment of four prizes to be awarded to per
| sons sending in the largest correct list OF
| English words of not less than four let
tiers, constructed from the letters con-
tanned in the words "The Worlds Fair
each competitor to send with his list the
sum of one dollar. An enormous circu-
lation had been acquired throughout
the United States upon the basis
of this offer. Prizes were advertised
to be awarded on June %, 1891,
the first prize, consisting of 81 900 in gold,
the second grand piano valued at $500,
and the fourth prize a sewing machine es-
timated at S65. AS to the third prize, con-
sisting of silver tea set, gold lined, and
valued at $3.50, the clever and unique plan
was adopted of awarding it to thousands
of persons, as indicated by the receipt of
the following printed notice, which
was sent through the United States mails
to the subscribers of the paper throughout
the country:
OFFICE OF THE HOME FAscINAToR
MONTREAL, Can, July 90, 1891.
DEAR MADAM-With pleasure we inform you
that you are one OF the successful competitors
in the ''world's Fair word contest, and that you
have been awarded an elaborate silver tea set.
which amount kindly remit by registered letter,
postoffice order or express money order, and we
prize to you. To avoid mistakes you will oblige
us by returning this letter with your full address
written plainly in ink on the lines below. Con-
graduating you we remain, faithfully yours
THE HOME FAscINAToR PUBLISHING Co.
P. S.-We ask you as special favor to show
this beautiful prize to your friends and speak a
good word for Home Fascinator.
These circulars for a remittance of $3.50
to pay for packing and shipping the prize,
it is stated, have been freely distributed
throughout Kentucky, Missouri Iowa and
Pennsylvania. So far as advices have been
received in one small town in Missouri six
persons were notified that each one had
been awarded this silver tea set, and six
money oroers, amounting to $3.50 each,
were promptly forwarded to the Home
Fascinator company at Montreal.
Canada has no statute authorizing the
stoppage of the payment of money orders
or the delivery of registered letters ad
through the mails. The postmaster gem
eral of this country cannot prevent the
issuing of money order or the
mailing of a registered letter, so
it looked as if the scheme would
work with no power to prevent the
complete success of the swindle. The re-
turn of the circular destroyed all written
evidence of advices from the Fascinator
company. The department seemed power
less to act and avert the contamination of
great wrong carried on through its own
mails until it was suggested that all Amer
lean terminal postofices designated as ex-
change Offices with Canada should be treat
ed as offices of destination and the post
masters there instructed by wire to refuse
to certify money orders or forward regis
tered letters payable and directed to the
Home Fascinator, but to return them to
the offices of origin marked fraudulent.
1t is expected that many thousands of
these letters containing money will thus be
restored to the writers.
Four People Murdered.
LONDON, August "a dispatch from
Crete says the house of Turkish family in
the village of Ceramos was recently at
tackled and two men, a woman and a
child were murdered. Eighteen Christian
subjects were arrested for the crime and
were imprisoned with Turkish convicts.
While in prison they were stabbed with
knives and so seriously injured that they
lay for eight days in dangerous condi-
ton.
MORE ITALIANS IN DANGER.
An English View of Consequences
Likely to Follow the BrumfeId
Murders.
LONDON, Aug. 3.-The Globe this after
noon publishes dispatches giving details of
the murder of Mr. and Mrs. Brumfield
and their five children in Wayne county,
w. Va, on Friday last, by crowd of
drunken italian laborers employed on the
Norfolk & Western railroad, and in an
editorial commenting on the crime, says:
"This horrible outrage will assuredly
have its full effects upon the future rela-
tons between the Americans and undesir-
who cross the Atlantic are by far the most
Objectionable of all the emigrants who go
to America. They appear to have lost
their only visible merit-that of
sobriety Self-defense in some states
where the state protection is exceedingly
elementary becomes not only right but a
duty. The murderers in this case will I'M
doubtedly receive their deserts from the
people of West Virginia and it will then
be seen if Italy will demand Federal in
quiry with a view to securing compensa-
ton. If Italy should do so the answer
that will be made to her demand will per-
haps be shorter and sharper than the one
previously made by the United States gov
compensation for the families of the Ital-
| ians lynched at New Orleans. That coun-
| try, which cannot deal efficiently with its
| own murderers, muse not object to any
sort of law that does the work for it.'
The story Denied.
CHARLESTON, W. Va, August 3.-The
sensational dispatches sent out from Cat
lettsburg, KY, about the murder of the
Brumfeld family in Wayne county, w
| Va, by drunken Italians, are without
| foundation, the facts existing only in the
| imaginative brain of the correspondent. A
special to the Gazette from Huntington
says that the mail carrier from Wayne
| court house to Huntington who passed
Brumfeld's house this morning says the
entire story is fabrication. Other par
ties from the same locality also say there
is no truth in it. The people of this enc
of the state are indignant that such abso
lutte falsehoods have been given 30 mucf
publicity.