The Wheeling daily intelligencer. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1865-1903, 1899-04-28
POSTAL FRAUDS.
The Department Trying 70 Break up
Fake Advertisements = Recent
Work OF the Attorney General.


The Department Trying TO Break up
Fake Advertisements = Recent
Work Of the Attorney General.
Washington correspondence OF New
York Journal of Commerce: The post
office department has been making a
more serious effort lately than hereto
fore to shut the use OF the malls to
palpable advertising frauds. The num-
Der OF glittering offers presented In the
advertising columns Of certain classes
of misrepresentation finding their
way Into papers of the highest stand
Ing through the absence of obvious mp,
pearance OF fraud-has multiplied
greatly In recent years and the amount
Of money collected by these advertisers
probably runs Into the hundreds .of
thousands. There are many such ar
tlcles. advertised which stand upon the
border line OF fraudulent ard apparent
!y honest business. which 1t is difficult
for the postoffice officials to pursue
There are others where the nature OF
the goods offered Imposes a guilty ST.
lence upon the person defraudcd
through fear OF exposing his dishonesty
or Vices. There are numerous cases.
however. where the fraud is SO clear
that the exclusion of the matter from
the malls becomes possible when few
well authenticated complaints have been
received and examined. The activity OF
the -postofilce department. through the
inspectors. and assistant att ,rney-gener-
al Tyner. is driving many of these en-
terprlses to the wall, and Is likely, In the
long run, to greatly reduce their num-
Der. Hardly day passes that several
complaints arefnot received Of offers of
wonderful cures, with written guarnn-
tees and refunds OF money II unsats-
factory. which prove to be delusive
when puteto the test by disappointed
patrons.
Among the sample cases OF this sort
which recently came to the attention OF
the postofiice department was that Of
some establishment offering TO remove
hair from the face and giving what
rurported to be the chemical analysis
of n leading New York chemist, with
his certificate of the efficiency OF the
compound. Persons who tried the al
legged remedy and found that 1t failed to
fulfill the supposed chemical guaranty
asked for the refund OF their money,
ter came to the attention OF the postot-
flee officials. letter was addressed to
the New York chemist. who was I man
OF high standing, asking whether the
alleged analysis had been given by him.
He promptly replied that the compound
had never been brought before him In
any way and his name was used with
out the slightest warrant. This palpa-
BILE fraud resulted In the refusal OF the
postotIice department to continue the
delivery OF mail to the advertisers. They
were also advised that further proceed
ings were likely to be taken IL they did
not abandon the swindle. Another re-
cent case involved the offer OF gold
watches and diamond rings for GER
tain number of subscriptions to n per-
iodlcal. Complaints from persons who
had received these prizes led to inquiry
from the manufacturers of the watches
and rings II was found that the latter
were manufactured for 81 10 per gross
or less than one cent apiece. The gold
watches were founG to be produced at
g o. apiece and the only semblance Of
gold was thin washing Of gilt. The
advertiser was required to refund the
money TO all persons who had forward
ed subscriptions and had made anthem
kiIhlNu utlt Nttc uOupt-
less many hundreds of persons who had
been swindled who failed TO make COM
plants and whose money went to en-
rich the swindlers, but there was no
other course for the department to pur-
sue than 10 deal with complaints actu-
ally fled. The advertisers were notified.
however.that further proceedings would
he taken II they did not retire from the
business Of distributing penny diamonds
and 81 gold watches. The magazine
was consolidated with another and the
business apparently abandoned.
The pursuit of these fraudulent
schemes has been natural sequence OF
the enforcement OF the anti-lotterF laws
and has been promoted In some degree
by those laws. 1t required several ef-
forts at legislation to get the lottery
laws in shape capable OF enforcement,
and many devious methods on the part
OF some Of the lottery people were un-
earthed In the process of investigation.
Cases were found where some humble
purchaser of a ticker would be up
preached by an agent of the lottery and
offered what seemed 10 him large
sum, perhaps 500 or 5000, for signing a
certificate that he had drawn one OF the
$4,000 prizes and keeping up n proper
appearance Of qualification before his
neiGhbors. 4 It was found difficult at first
to carry on prosecution because OF
the claims of agents in particular ju-
dlcial districts that the delivery of the
ticket was contaminated outside the
Jurisdiction Of the court. ThisJwas rem
edled by legislation. and the complete
exclusion OF the lottery business from
the malls finally deprived 1t of It's old
prestige. 1t Is proposed to follow up
fake advertising of fraudulent rene
dies; pictures and obscene literature
With the same energy. 50 far as the cir.
cumstances permit 1t is probable tina,
a considerable degree of caution will
be forced upon advertisers, even II they
are not driven from the business. Forg.
ed tests by eminent experts, writer
guarantees and offers to refund money
III not found satisfactory" will have to
be more carefully guarded, even II OF.
fers of astonishing bargains for few
cents continue to de!ude certain por.
tons of the public.