The Opelousas courier., 1900-05-26

States silver dollar. what gentleman
in the crowd will give me fifty cents
for it?'
"The crowd didn't seem to banker
after silver dollars at fifty cents
apiece.
It's a perfectly good silver dol
lar urged the man in the buggy. 81
any gentleman wishes to examine ii
let him step right mp. Besides, how
long do you suppose I'd be outside ol
State prison il I went about selling
counterfeit money in the public
streets?'
aJust then his eyes lighted on the
proprietor of the hotel who was in the
crowd.
81 put up at your house last night,
didn't ~
Eyes said the hotel man.
"'Did I pay you with good money
this morning?' .
.'The hotel man said he thought
he did.
"'Well, step up here then and risk
fifty cents to start the ball a-rolling.
You may take my word for it, it's a
hundred per cent. investment.
ssThe hotel man laughed and final
ly came forward and gave him fifty
cents for the dollar. The man in the
buggy immediately held up the fifty
cents.
"sNow, he said, who'll give me a
quarter for this half dollar?'
fCHJLsr 49, - r,1rwt& Is43 n~r1k - n1H
q taker, and the man in the buggy
thereupon sold the quarter for fifteen
cents, the fifteen cents for o dime,
and the dime for q nickel. These last
bargains went like hot cakes. Then
he held up the nickel.
Gentlemen. he said, I want to
buy six matches for this Eve cents
"He got a dozen or two offers. The
crowd seemed to be grasping the
idea that they were trading ON q bull
market. The man in Che buggy SCI
cured his matches and held one up.
atWhat gentleman he said, will
give me O dollar for this match?'
aThis was 0 new phase and the bull
market took on O conservative tone.
"sOh, T know as well rs you do
said the imam, that that's q high
price to pay for q match. You can
buy fifty boxes for the money. But,
gentlemen, these don't happen to be
ordinary matches, and somebody's
going to give me a dollar for each one
| Of these six, and it's going 10 be the
best bargain he's made in O long
time
"There was nothing ct the sales
man about the man in the buggy. He
was the prophet pure and simple. He
stated his case calmly and ~carelessly
like o man who was not concerned
with the result. There was a pause
for a few moments; then somebody
handed mp q dollar. The man in the
buggy folded the match in o bit of
paper and made the buyer step mp TO
the wheel. Then he poked it into his
vest pocket and said:
s Now, you button your coat up
over that, and stay right there, SO Ill
know whore you are when ] want
you.
saThen he held up q second match,
and sold one after another OF the sir
at a dollar apiece in less than three
minutes. After that he pulled out q
fye-dollar bill and said he wanted TO
buy three more matches with It, and
the crowd tumblad over itself. He
broke these matches in halves, and
began to sell these halves at q dollar
apiece. He disposed of three and
then the market sagged again. Bnt
the man in the buggy Was not in the
least disconnected. He broke the re-
naming halves into quarters and of
fered the quarters at 81 apiece. The
crowd began to laugh. Then they
stopped laughing. The man in the
buggy said little or nothing, but
somehow he was hung Is thick with
promises as ii Christmas tree. The
next thing the crowd knew be had
sold four of tho quarters at ~ each.
Then the market halted again.
All righE, gentlemen, just as Jon
4 y said the man III the buggy. I've
got iust two more q0arter-matches,
and I'm going to sell them at So each.
Two little bits of matches ct 10
apiecel Funny, isn't it,
t waa funny, but he sold them
And eger5 Aasah, or half OF quarters
he sold be wrapped up n 3 bit Of pa-
per, pokad Il into the buyers vest
pocket and made him button his coat
up over ii and stand close 30 he could