Delaware gazette and state journal., 1896-06-25
A sUsrroIoos oUsroMe eR.
Sale Of "a High Priced Diamond Thnt Wa
kDt Cotn pleted ff j


Not Completed. a.
Yes" smiled the good looking and
woll-dressed clerk in iewolry store TO
a Washington Star reporter, '.there are
tricks in our trade as we'll as in
others -
I'm really surprised" responded
the reporter, who had never bought
more than Sa worth of iewelry-tbat
is. line jowelry-in his life. "How
can there heYi
In various ways, and one OF those
ways Ia the marking up OF goods on
display. Other lines OF business draw
trado by marking goods down, while
wo can do better by marking them up.
For instance, We will put iowel or
some rich article on display which mny
bo worth as much rs 81, 600 or 81, 000
and we will mark it $4,000 !. That
draws people, somehow, for they do like
to see big figures. As to paying that
sort of a price, that is quite u differ
ont matter. People who are paying
those big prices don't pay them until
they know they are getting their
moneys worth as near as may be.
They arc painfully suspicious, too, and
are constantly on the lookout not to be
caught in any kind of trap.
II remember some years ago | had
charge of iewelry store for the sum
mer at swell resort, and next door TO
us was another New York firm, whose
reputation was ut 80 good as our own,
owing to tho fact that they catered to
the flash trade, while ours was quiet
and swell. They had in their window
a big diamond for display markod
81. 500, and one day rich woman whom
! knew was attracted by il and wanted
to got it for her husband. She was o
sharp woman, notwithstanding she was
rich, and she knew that she could get
the stone for loss money and proceeded
to do ii the easist way. This was to
make Il plump offer for it, and she went
in and laid down $500 on the counter
and said il they wanted to exchange
the stone for the money, now was the
chance, and that it must be done at
once.
1.-The clerk hemmed and hawed
awhile, but Mt lust agreed to trade lie
| then took the stone down TO the other
end OF the store behind the counter,
stopping a moment TO speak to Il clerk,
and came up to the lady on the outside
of the counter with the stone in his
hand. She looked al him suspiciously
us ne neltl tne 1oWol out 10 neT, anu
shook her head. 81 don't want it"
she said. Pm as sharp as you are,
and | would have taken it if you had
handed il TO mo across the counter, but
| don't want it now" That ended the
trade, and tho woman left
The lady told me this part of the
story herself, and I folt sure that the
clerk had done just what she suspected
him of doing, AID that he had changed
the stone on his way around the coun.
tor Later | saw ono of tho clerks and
asked him about it, He was mad all
over, and was not choice OF the epi-
thets he applied to the clerk, who had
really acted square in the matter and
had only stopped TO tell the other clerk
of his good luck in making $500 sale.
Tho proprietor was hot, too, for not
withstanding the price was 81, 600 un-
dor what the diamond was marked, there
was still comfortable profit in it. AZ
to the lady, she was beyond explana-
tion, and to this day | presume she
thinks that i.weler tried to bunko her.
and didn't simply because sho was toe
sharp for him. ~