The morning news. [volume] (Savannah, Ga.) 1887-1900, 1892-09-18


by real artists Of high repute." at the ride
ulously low price of 25 cents each.
THE eminent artists" looked up from
time TO time as il they were accustomed to
hearing themselves 50 described without 90
ing into fits. and when the noon whistle
sounded they dropped their tools and
rushed down to the bakeshop below for a
mou:hful Of pie and glass of beer. In the
meantime l questioned the owner of the
establishment as to the opportunities of
making my salt should | become an emf
nent artist. He said that he would teach
me the art for 90, TO be repaid when be-
came expert enough to be trusted with a
genuine Autograph. told him l was much
Obliged for the opening and would consider
his offer, and went away thankful that
this was not wholly despicable sVindle,
intended TO get hard earned dollars from
poor people.
Among the answers which have received
from persons who advertise in small country
papers "A Sure Fortune for Any One" or
''If You are in Debt and Without Work
Write TO Us and Fortune Will be Yours, ~
or again, "a Good Income Without Much
W ork and no Can vasslng," are some ouri-
Gus specimens. Most of these hail from
small towns. and 1 am sorry to say that the
profits from dupes seem TO be such as TO
keep rogues constantly at 1t. The variety
OF their devices is almost endless.
One advertisements offered valuable books
for almost nothing; Others promised
pictures or works Of art as o gift; others
propose to make the applicant rich in short
order by telling him secrets beyond all
price for 2-cent postage stamp; again,
Others have secrets for curing CONSUMPTION,
hydrophobia, paralysis and pretty much
every disease under the sun, which they
will impart to any one who chooses 20 in
close 10 cents to the advertiser, who gives
up his time not for the paltry 10 cents, as
he Is careful to say, but for his love Of
humanity.
swINDLKRs WHO LAUGH.
or course in these last there are a good
many cases of amusing roguery in which
the swtndled person gets almost the worth
of his money for the lesson. | remember
that three years ago the postoftice author
tiles stopped the letters OF man who was
receiving about $50 a day from persons who
sent him a quarter for what he advertised
as "a fine steel engraving of Queen Vic
toria" and got a scent postage stamp In
return.
There was also a man who offered for half
dollar a sure method OF killing the potato
bug and sent bis hayseed clients two little
pieces Of wood with the directions. place
the bug between these pieces of wood and
squeeze hard" | have no doubt that these
out-and-out swindles of petty kind offer
good lessons at a small price.
The infallible receipt for getting rich
which was sent in return for a 2-eent stamp,
"Work night and day and never spend a
cent" and another for enabling man TO
do without eating, Take dose OF poison"
are well worth the money to any one who
can laugh over the matter.
But in contrast to these wholesale hoaxes
are the cruel swindles which take dollars out
OF the pockets Of poor people, who can least
afford the money because they are out Of
work. Some time ago the Brooklyn police
got information that many complaints were
coming from country people concerning a
certain firm which advertised gorgeous
prize together with a bottle OF DIR.
Somebody's unrivaled consumption cure
The postoffloe authorities reported TO the
police shat the hrm IN question received
from 800 TO 400 latters a day, aud as moth
ing 60 the credit OF the establishment could
be found detectives we're sent to the house
of the reputed doctor, and after srresting
him broke into back room. where a dozen
girls we're engaged ia wrapping up and pre-
pairing for the mail little bottle OF some
combination, supposed 20 be whisky
and water. and putting IL into
q box together with the gorgeous
present aforesaid, which consisted OF brass
breastpin, worth perhaps cents. The
package, stamp and all did not cost the en-
terprising doctor more than 10 or II cents.
At the time the raid was made the mail for
that day was stopped and was found to con-
sIst OF l42 81 bills sent in answer to the adj
vertisement, twenty-eight letters of abuse
from victims who wanted their money
back. and, strangest of all, thirteen letters
from persons who had found themselves
greatly benefited by the consumption cure
and wanted more. The police broke up the
establishment, knowing well that it would
be a matter Of few weeks before the ''doc-
tor" under some other name, began his work
again.
ART WORK THAT IS QUEER.
From my Investigations found that ad-
vertisements Of the class In which you are
offered big income for little work may be
divided as follows:- First, those in which
you are invited to peddle some article which
you buy from the advertiser; second, those
in which you buy a process for making
some compound which you must dispose of
by peddling yourself or getting others to
peddle for you; third, those in which you
are invited to do some kind OF work at
starvation prices Of work which cannot be
done all For instance, one advertisement
reads: IF you want to make a comfor-
table income at home of $50 week write
to the International - Company, post
office box -, Chicago" l answered this
card and received this note:
DEAR SIR: The business we advertise, and in
which we need the services Of many ladies and
gentlemen is the making of beautiful picture,
which we call the Autograph. We send you
certain kind Of picture delicate, specially
prepared China paper. We require you TO put
1t on cardboard and apply the colors as directed
you can do it after few days practice We
send you, when you decide to undertake the
work, book Of instructions, for which we
charge you nothing, being desirous to have you
in our employ, and box Of paint and brushes,
for which you pay less than cost price namely,
81 81. No natural taste or artistic training is
needed for this work; bear IN mimi any one can
do it. For every picture you send to us salts
factorily finished we pay you As cents. We
send you at first five, which, when finished, will
easily finish four In one days work We sell
these pictures to canvassers and have never
been able to get enough of them to supply the
demand AS a matter of form before sending
you the first five pictures require you to
make deposit of 81 as a guarantee OF good
faith. aud we cannot undertake to start anyone
In the business who is not willing TO make the
deposit.
We feel sure that you will be able to do this
work well and that the money earned will sur
prise you. state how you prefer to be paddy
the week or by the month. or whenever you
send US the finished pictures
Together with this circular came a cons
tract. in which the victim states bis WILL
ingness to do the work required and agrees
to devote so many hours a day and do his
best. He is supposed to sign this and en-
close it with 81 so to the photographic
Company. In return will come five little
VOf0knraa tiaaDa nd