Hopkinsville Kentuckian. [volume] (Hopkinsville, Ky.) 1889-1918, 1896-09-05
THE BICYCLE RAFFLE.
Machines Sold on Chance at Many
Cigar and Drug Stores.


Cigar and Drug Stores.
The bicycle rattle has caught the
town. The number of wheels dis
posed of in this manner every week
is astonishing. Unlike the turkey
rafflc, the bicycle rattle shuns the
saloon. 1t is usually held in cigar
or drug stores, and in certain parts
of the town proprietors of such
stores who do not have raf1es at
least twice month begin to notice
that their popularity and their trade
is on the decrease.
The rattle tickets are arranged in
cumulative order and range in price
from ! cent to $3.50 for high grade
wheels, one dollar being the maxi
mum limit on tickets for wheels of
inferior make The purchaser draws
from a bunch of sealed envelopes and
pays the price marked on the in
closed card This method OF selling
tickets, which lends an additional
element of chance to the lottery, has
proved very effective. Strong, in
deed, must be the will of the young
man who can resist the temptation
to try his luck at securing a good
wheel at small cost. The people
who conduct the raffles always as
sure prospective victims that near
ly all the high numbers have been
drawn. y Thus Thus encouraged, the
young man grows reckless and
draws three innocent-looking en-
velopes. The first ticket may read
"49 cents" That is not bad, but
the other may cost $1.33 and 81. 46
respectively. Slowly and thought
fully the victim pays the bill, while
his friend, who holds the cards,
smilingly sympathizes with him for
a moment and then goes off to seek
other game, leaving the spectator
to reflect upon the fact that he is out
1926 and has only three chances in
$50 OF winning a'second-hand wheel.
The rattle scheme is not practiced
alone by persons who want to get
rid of old wheels. Many smart people
have adopted it purely as business
venture and offer the winner his
choice of any wheel made by GER
tain manufacturer. One of these
enterprising fellows explained his
method as follows: II go to fac
tory and tell the manager that I
want to rattle one of his machines.
Upon the payment of small amount
he places bicycle in the window of
certain cigar store. The balance
is paid after / have sold all my
tickets. One hundred and fifty of
these sell for about $113 and as l get
my wheels at reduced rates I clear
quite sum on every rattle. Why
do get discount? Well, in these
days of close competition makers
take advantage of every opportunity
to advertise their wheels, and one
which is displayed for a month in a
cigar store, where it will be noticed
and talked about, gets more adver-
Using than it would if exhibited at
half dozen cycle shows. Then
again you can see how the cigar man
profits. The lucky man must OF
course set 'em up, and as everyone
present is a loser and naturally,
wants all he can get for his money,
he calls for the best in stock"
The deplorable feature of this, the
latest offspring of the cycling craze,
is that it develops a habit which
seems to be contagious. If anyone
doubts the truth of this statement
let him investigate and he will find
that many of his young male &C
quaintances hold one or more tickets
in some bicycle rattle.