Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1901-01-11
ASTROLOGY FAKIRS,


/ THE MODERN SAMPLE SHARPER THAN
HE OF THE MIDDLE AGES.
Readers of the Stars who Find
Connection Between the Planets
and the stock Market an4 who
Have No Trouble In Hooking vic
tins.
"Astrology as profession is in vast
~ more fourishing condition today than
it was in the middle ages" declared
well known cotton future broker of this
city. No, I'm not joking" he went on
earnestly. Its cold fact Back in (
the sixteenth century an astrologer gem
orally ran his telescope foundry in some
rickety old tower, with black cat as
side partner, and was mighty lucky if he
succeeded in lodging the stake as
wind up. At present he has a suit Of
rooms in metropolitan skyscraper, die
tates his correspondence to beautiful !
typewriter houris and does a land Office
/ business in market forecasts at So a head,
: postage prepaid. 1t seems incredible, /
know, but millions of dollars are un-
doubtedly invested every year under the
immediate direction of fakirs who pre-
tendto read the future in the stars
My attention was first attracted to the
subject in 1883, through the peculiar or
4 ders began to receive from an old Gus
toner who had been taking an occasional
fler in cotton ever since had been in
business. He knew nothing about the
l3lntricacies Of the market himself and gem
orally asked my advice before investing.
Allgof a sudden, however, he changed his
tactics completely and would come in
/ with precise and definite instructions,
! which he insisted on having carried out to
the letter. Attic same time he switched
! from the bull to the bear side of the mar
! ket. inferred, of course that he had
5 been Investing in some of the ready made
( tips that are hawked about the country,
and, being curious TO know the source of
his information, | subjected him to lit
tie pumping He finally admitted in rath-
( er shame faced fashion that he had be-
come client Of a Boston astrologer who
called himself Zobaria and sent him
weekly letter of advice supposed to be
compiled from observations of the plan
cts. j looked over the fellows circulars
( and other literature, and more amazing
l lot of balderdash j never laid eyes on. 1t
terms, occult gibberish and modern
Stock Exchange slang, and defy any
I human being to tell what he was driving
at That was probably the thing that
made it impressive.
IS I tried To point out the gross absurd
ity of the whole proposition, continued
the broker. This fakir,' said l, is
talking about planets that are thousands
of times larger than this little earth of
Il ours. They are billions upon billions Of
miles away and rush through space in
orbits of immeasurabe vastness. The
human mind can never begin to conceive
their grandeur and their immensely. and
all we know is that they have been fol-
lowing out some great universal law since
the beginning of time; yet here is little
tnppeny na'penny confidence man in
Boston who asks you to believe that this
stupcndous procession of worlds is set in
) motion to govern the nanipulations of a
handfrl of paltry stockholders in Liver
pool and New Orleans. Its the craziest
and most comieal idea ever broached out
5 side of an asylum. Ths old gentleman
shrugged his shoulders. He's hit it
right a powerful lot Of times. be replied
gave him up as n hopeless s;ase. bEs
the incident caused me to lock into the
n VI anu upon u iittte inquiry \ found
s. 10 or ~ spectators here IN tht, city who
were investing heir riofeT regularly on
the adylce OF lss,aria md either. proscss
sionai astroiagei's Of tbs Same lamp.
~ course they represented a rlel.e fS9ssl
ton: Of the fotal number = loenl clies.ys.
Inc faksFs senlos:t us t'ii col IN. STIR.
rice, SYnsal ard i;isi;ssi;al stocks. u 'ft.
+ Letters beginning u about tlis s,llsle MY
FOE eNlnai'ie iitsi Mars n the sct,sssls
& ant ant ine ~, impending change .s-
nus ans .linster II the third pl;siAe iIlslis
X caring fiSln -s,ia;ii'ket SIRIUS conlesns lett
q wing OF last horoscope. aud 50 pii nd 50
on. u Is hara TO peileye that some es-
PIE can possibly swallow such palpaisle
frau'' bur found TO ny surprise that 4
good many Of the dupes We're men and
y women OF superior education and, an,
parently. more iAan average intelligence
Later On mad a Clerk IN my Office
VINO mao. formerly worked for IN ;lstroiS-
b ger OF some note III. tNsfvs ! ORR city. and
ne teid me many amusing things about
!, .he business behind the scenes. His