Barton County democrat. [volume] (Great Bend, Kan.) 1885-1915, 1892-07-14
A GROSS FRAUD JUSTLY EXPOSED

Sells Brothers, after Three Years of
Forbearance and Patient Magnanimity,
are Finally Forced to Expose and Protest
Against the Fraudulent Appropriation
and Shameful Abuse of Their Name and
Titles by Hardened and Irresponsible
Cheats. Plain Facts Which Fortify
Wholesome Public Warning.
For the past twenty-one years we
have been continuously and conspicu-
ously before the people as owners and
active managers Of the exhibition which
has ever borne our names. We have
no interest whatever in, or connection
with any other, directly or indirectly.
Ten years ago we purchased our
brothers entire interest in our present
and only Show, which since that time
has attained its conceded grandeur,
excellence, popularity and Information
al fame.
All too frequently beggarly sharpers
seek to victimize the public by hiding
their Infamous purposes and worthless
nakedness under the stolen names of
honorable, established and noted enter
prises, and to such abuse we have been
so long subjected that We are at last,
as paramount duty to our patrons
and ourselves, absolutely forced to
make this moderate statement of facts.
Things in themselves utterly insig-
n1ficant sometimes become important
through circumstances associations,
and this, unfortunately for honest
folks, is the case with the paltry and
piratical pest which for the past three
seasons has infested the country, and
by theft, fraud and falsehood sought to
participate in our success, and to make
our pre- eminent commercial as well as
amusement standing sponsor to its in
faEey and failure. The fact that we
have been too long generously silent
and elected to treat it with magnani-
nous contempt has but emboldened it
to renewed and more braZen effrontery
and to continued cOunterfeiting, worse
in it's effects than the issuing OF spu-
rious money. 1t has long passed the
uttermost limit of law and forbearance,
and it's fate shall be that of all sneak
ing, dirty and noxious vermin.
1t first crawled, wronged and robbed
under the name of SELLS s. Address,
was sold at sheriff's sale at St. Joseph
Mo-, and portion of it purchased by
resident Of Topeka, Kansas, where ii
was taken, and whence it started last
year under the name of "SellS' London
Olypian Show 1t failed a SECOND
time, and was again shipped to Topeka
Its unfortunate employees were brutally
cheated out of their hard-earned wages
and were kept from starving by tht
city authorities at the public expense
It's resident, actual owner played {
double role and doubly baffled it's man!
creditors. When they sought to hole
it they were informed that he had leas
ed it; when they appealed to him the!
were cody told that he had no interes
in it. The fact that we own consider
able property in Topeka, and had win
lied to conceal the fraud and involve
us in the approbrium of reputation.
This season the montebank cadave
has ben resurrected under the title o
SELLS s. Rentfrew's Show" and a few
cast-cff cages hired from the Wallace
show to represent menagerie. Rent
frew never had circus, wherefore
may be readily inferred what his con
tribution to the stupendous who'll
amounts to. Taking advagtage of GU
absence in Australia, this last tente'
Octopus gathered all our titles verbtain
within the embrace of its Shiny suck
ers, and thus masked is repeating it
raids, and impecuniously wandering t
a bankrupt's death. Having borrowe
a decent livery to serve the devil il
will not save It, but we naturally an
Indignantly object to such ring tram
going about dressed in our clothes t
swindle the unwary, and in some in
stances to bring iiscredit born of mis-
apprehension upon our high and vel
known reputation, so carefully guarde
and maintained for nearly a quarter {
century. There is but one legitimat
Sells Brothers Snow and its founder
and sole owners are,
Respectfully your obd't servants,
EPHRIAM SELLS,