Herald and tribune. [volume] (Jonesborough, Tenn.) 1869-current, 1897-05-05
INCIDENTS OF CITY LIFE.
Some of the Disagreeable Features of Life
In Large Cities.
From an Occasional Correspondent.

There are thousands of people who
live in the city by robbing people in
the country. With the approval of the
editor l propose to explain some of
these robbing schemes and, perhaps
help some readers to make money by
saving it.
One reason why city swindlers are 80
thrifty is because those who have been
duped by them are ashamed to expose
their OWL simplicity in being taken in,
and also because the exposure involves
trouble and expense.
The head of a notorious patent con.
Germ in Washington has been heard to
remark that a sucker" is born every
minute and that he looks upon the in
ventor as his particular prey. There
are or an average about 425 patents
granted each week and the name and
address of every patentee is published
in the Patent Office Gazette. This gives
the patent sharks in Washington, New
York, Philadelphia, Chicago, Cincin-
matte and other cities and western
towns access to ear of the inventor.
They send him circulars 30 cunningly
prepared that he thinks they have been
written expressly to him and they con.
firm his opinion that he has a fortune in
his patent. Their proposition is to sell
the patent on commission, usually 10
per cent but the inventor must ad.
vance from SO to $50 for advertising.
If the inventor is green and gullible he
will send them money, which he
would better burn, but if he is sensible,
he will burn their circulars. These
people never sell patents, never even
try to sell them and whether they
strike you for SO or SEQ. the bulk of
the money will go into their pockets.
Some of them may pretend to try to
sell the patent in order that if you
bring suit against them they may de.
feat you by showing an advertisement,
but do not be deceived by their pre-.
tence that they wish to work for a
commission. To unmask their game,
offer them instead OF the money in ad-
vance, that you will double, triple,
~quadruple their commission, or even
give them ninety nine dollars in a hun
dred and see how quickly they will let
you alone. This will prove to you con.
clusively that these people have no in.
tention, means, or prospect of selling
your patent, but are after the fee in
advance only. l do not believe there
are any honest patent sale agents no
matter what they publish, claim and
swear. The men who 60 into that
business must go into it to deceive and
get money on false pretense. Patents
are not sold by agents, or in that way
The large majority of inventions that
are sold are disposed of to neighbors,
friends, partners CIR hackers of the in
ventor before patent is granted or while
application for patent is pending. Then
after the grant or patent the inventor
and his assignees sell by territory or
form companies to manufacture or sell
on royalty. But the large majority of
patents granted never bring anything
to the inventor or owner, but are like
the larger half Of all human ventures
failures.
Another scheme is to urge the Ameri
can patentee to get European patents,
and there is one western firm that pre-
tends to bear M half the expense Of
$40 for procuring German design pat
ent or Gebrauchsmuster provided they
can have the privilege OF selling the
foreign patent, claiming to have un-
equaled facilities for selling, The
suggestion of sale is only a bait. What
tney call nall expense or $40 is four
times as much as the German Gebruch
smuster costs, and nine times in ten it is
uotworth a cent, for they will never
sell it; or think about it after they
get theS20.
Do not be deceived with the refer
ences that these people give. They
will refer you to commercial agencies
Dun & Bradstreet; but these agencies
only affirm that they have a CONNER
cial rating, that they have money, they
do not tell that they got it by the de-
ception which they are practicing on
you. Many men with good commercial
rating ought to be in the States