The Jersey City news. (Jersey City [N.J.]) 1889-1906, 1895-10-16
SLICK SVINDLERS.
Members of the Board of Trade
Tell How They Were
Vietimized.

Vlctlmlzed.
TITS strange how easily merchants are
often duped by swindlers,'' unused Mr..
John j. Voorhees,, President of the Board
of Trade, last night.
He was sitting in the Board of Trade
rooms with Messrs. Andrew ]. Corcoran.
NJ. L.. Stowe and James Banks, patiently
awaiting the arrival of others to form a
quorum and begin the regular monthly
hack at the water question.
In that unexplained way conversation
has of drifting from mathematics to
baseball and from the Equator to the
North Pole, the talk somehow travelled
around to sharpers, and Mr.. Voorhees,
began in the foregoing manner to de-
scribe how neatly his firm was a month
6 euchred out of a valuable directory.
A dapper young man, the speaker said,
came into the office of the New Jersey
Car Rubber Company a few lays ago
and addressing one of Mr.. Voorhees,
clerks said in the most engaging man
ner:-
MY dear sir. I am selling the United
States Directory. Now don't be alarmed.
1 DOM one to sell you one, because I
know you have it; but wha I want is
this: I have interested Mr.. John A.
Walker, President of the Dixon Crucible
Company, in the work, and he would
like to see it. Unfortunately / haven't
time to go over to New York and get
one. Would you loan me yours for his
Inspections? 1 will return it in a few
minutes
And my handsome young clerk" con
cluded Mr.. Voorhees, with a hearty laugh.
gave him that costly work and have
never seen it nor the young dapper gen
tleman since"
DIRECTORY TRICK.
When everybody stopped laughing Mr..
M. L. Stowe. Vice-President of the
Eureka Hose Company, began with a
story of a bright young man who in
duced him for the trif1ing consideration
OF a few dollars to buy a complete direc-
tory for 1895.
Il paid the money! said Mr.. Stowe,
sadly. and the directory was delivered.
1t was handsomely bound; but when l
looked for some addresses, Arlington
avenue was an unopened street at GER
tain places, and the street on which l
ave was not even mentioned. Turning to
me a directory for 1892
IL was Brother Banks turn to tell how
he had been Sw.ndled. In the saddest of
sad tones, the representative of the Mer-
chants Protective Association said that
he had purchased aScostiy pair of scales
on which to weigh fiour and other com
m4dstlss. One fine DAY a slick fellow
Your brother tells me the scales we
sold You are not exactly true. I nave
come to fix Them" and SO saying pulled
off mis- coat. rooH out of tine pockets
tools. and in a jiffy had those scales in
pieces.
~. Ar ----
to carry off the fragments to be reset
at the factory, but, like the letter, they
never came back said Mr.. Banks with
a mournful little twinkle in his eye.
THIS ONE Is COMMON.
These doleful "reminiscences refreshed
Mr.. VOORHEES, memory, and he. began
Once upon a. time, as the story. books
say. Mr.. VOORHEES, received a call from
a smooth tongued gentleman who said
he represented the South Eastern Rail-
to make a report on car-heating hose.
Would Mr.. Voorhees,, as the head. of a
great manufacturing concern and one
who had experience in hose, not the
pedal coverings. give him some pointers?
OF course the affable and courteous head
of the Rubber Company was only too
Voorhees, treated his visitor to a learned
disquisition upon car-heat.ng hose.
The visitor was evidently a well posted
railroad man and quickly perceived every
point made. In an hour Mr.. Voorhees,
loaded him up with data sufficient to
fill a library and with many q the
smooth gentleman rose 10 depart. He
was on his way to the door when he
pulled out his pocketbook and said, as
If the idea had just occurred to HIM
"Ahi / nave a check here for 800 and
I don't know anybody here; would you
cash it for me, / wish to pay my bill
at the Hotel Washington
st ann very sorry. we don't keep cash
here. We pay out in checks" dipfomati-
cally replied Mr.. Voorhees,, and then adj
ded sotto voce, Same old game
oh, well. never mind said me other
tween the leaves Of the poeketbook, and
turning towards the door. MIR. VOORHEES,
was about to relent, the man actions.
were so innocent, when he was quickly
undeceived by the visitor turning around
and saying
Gould you loan me $50 and / will give
you my check as security?'
Mr.. VOORHEES, was sorry, in fact, morti-
fed. thai he couldn't even do that, and
road company for carheating hose Mr..
Voorhees, added with g grin.
1t was now MI. Andrew ]. Corcoran's
turn to confess that even smart a bust
hoodwinked. In this instance, however,
it was a bundle of tickets for a ball
When he handed out his dollars he found
the ball had long since come off; This
put Mr.. Corcoran on his mettle and
when a representative of a Goo Goo AS
ISOLATION came to borrow a windmill to
be used at a mass meeting to abuse DEM
ocrats, Mr.. Corcoran Indignantly ordered
the arrest of the man and the mass
IT guess we'd better ADJOURN" said
Mr.. j.. A. Deer, Jr., who was aching to
get away, and the stories were cut off.