The San Francisco call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1895-1913, 1895-12-29
A MERE SUGGESTION.

1t is day of leisure. 1t is the closing of
the year. 1t is a time for quiet meditation
in an easy repose from vexing cares. All
that is human should rest. Even the
faker being human-at least in the form
of him and the clothes of him-should
have for while respite from his breath
less and senseless wildgoose chasing and
be allowed a chance to recover from the
sickening fag that slackens all that is his,
from his inward yearnings to his outward
pants.
That the poor faker may obtain this lit
tie rest from the search for new fakes, we
offer him this morning the suggestion of
new scheme. 1t is to be a suggestion
merely and must therefore be prefaced
with a slight explanation Let the taker,
instead of seeking novel schemes, pause
this morning and consider what he has
done for journalism during the past year.
He will find the recollection restful and
perhaps even soporihc. He has had cou-
pom lottery schemes for everything from a
bitter pill to a sweet violet. He has had
voting contests for the most daring school
marin, the most beautiful policeman and
the most protuberant citizen. He has
offered town lots. bicycles, carriages and
sarsaparilla in prizes for the best guessers
of mystery stories. He has even devised
pap jugs for Christmas-born babies. In
short, he has involved journalism in such
a whirlagust of schemes, coupons and
mysteries that no man could ever tell
whether the journalist was faker or the
faker was journalist.
uo,-;nr oil ,b;S rocarJod IN ba meet WOO
what does the future offer? 1t is here that
we make our suggestion. Why should not
the next great stroke of enterprise be a
voting contest on the advisa bility of pub
fishing lottery advertisements in family
newspaper? The balloting could be easily
joined with guessing contest as to which
side would win, how many votes would be
polled, and what would be the color OF the
hair of the man who made the best guess.
For prizes, lottery tickets could be offered
and every voter be allowed a prize for every
ten votes. The possibilities of the snap
are too numerous to be elaborated here.
The takers who reflect on the plan will see
the chance afforded by it for pleasing not
only the lottery sharks but lottery suckers
and all other kind of fish that come to the
takers net.
The only objection that can be urged to
the scheme is that it might result in snch
popular vote against lottery advertising
that the faker would be hoist with his own
petard. This objection, however, is not so
strong as it seems. The fake paper circu-
lates mainly among people who like fakes
and OF all such schemes the lottery is the
greatest. 1t is guessing contest, a mys-
terry story. free gift concern and coupon
circus all combined in one bewildering ag-
gregation of astounding surprises and
dissolving views. The vote, therefore
is almost dead sure thing for the
faker. 1t would please the public. more.
over, to know just how many readers
of fake papers are willing to stand up and
be counted on the side of the lotteries. We
repeat that this is mere suggestion. If
the faker will elaborate it, however, we are
convinced he can make more ont of it than
out of any of the schemes he tried during
the past year, not excepting even the won
derful journalistic enterprise of getting
people to guess how many words there are
in forty-paged paper.