The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1903-12-25
500 K Selling
Christrr1As Toys :


The Christmas novelty faker has sprung
up out of the ground and is now spread
ing himself over the face of the United
States. He is streaming away to the
smaller cities and carrying with him the
| scores of cheap novelties that are expect
ed to profit him thousands of dollars in
the aggregate and two weeks after
Christmas be things of the past and for
gotten.
There are two or three establishments
where a faker is furnished with an entire
outfit of novelties and sent forth to sell.
These takers are seldom seen by the pub
lie, except on special occasions, when
their wares arc appropriate, and after
they are sold out they vanish as mysteri-
ously as they came.
There will be no fewer thar 500 of these
men crying their wares about the streets
for ten days before Christmas and the day
after they will have vanished. In the ten
days or two weeks Of their operations
they collect from the public in dimes and
| quarters at least $500 each. According
to good authorities that viii be the lowest
estimate of their earnings.
Many Make Large Profits.
ScCle who are past masters of the art of
separating the public from money will
nave from $1,000 to 81, 500 to put away after
the season closes and all the incidental
expenses are paid.
II SilIi lHc Idht Ids W pay IL lcS
with the stock of goods he gets and with
the stand he is allowed to occupy. These
are important factors in the business. and
some of them come high.
The Wholesaler who furnishes the novel
ties asks a graduated commission on all
sales, and then tie stand has to be paid
for at a good round sum.
There is no schedule of prices for
stands, as they are termed. y stand is
soley and simply the privilege OF remain
ing in front of Il certain place without
the fear of being driven away. For this
security the faker pays vGtious persons.
| Sometimes it is the proprietor of the store
or saloon in front of which he is sta
toned, and again the fee goes into the
pocket of am alderman or a policeman.
In these cases it is hard to show that this
is done, and the faker is the first to deny
any such transaction. But it Is a we'll
understood fact that this is often the
practice.
Tricks to Tempt the Public.
Once having his preliminaries all fixed,
the faker gets right down to the actual
work of his business. 1t is his object from
that time on to display his, wares in the
most tempting manner, and get the most
for them that he can. a favorite prac-
tice is to let some cheap little mechanical
.toy run about under the feet of passing
pedestrians, and then, when same care
less person steps on it, to demand about
four things its value for it. But, as 4 rule,
the only object Is to sell. II
The code of the cult demands that all
evidence Of a fourishing trade must be
avoided, and the true faker seldom keeps
more 5han two or three of his trinkets in
sight of the public ct one time. AS soon
as the stock on hand is exhausted he
brings out some more from a mysterious
box hidden away in a dark spot.
There is a tradition tat the original
faker sprang up in New York city some
years ago, in the person Of an east side
boy, whoSthought it a clever idea to ped
die things in public. He started with a
tray full of cheap pocket knives, and took
his stand on one of the main downtown
corners. There he built up such a trade
that he soon had a whole army of assist
ants, and a bank account that he would
not have dreamed of a year before.
.Outfitters Busy Ali Year.
IN This way. II is. said, the ,agt of SELLING
smsll TOYS was. started; II. is as sood ar
orisiI. Tor it as any other, and need no,
be disputed seriously. One thing, how
lever, is now certain, and that is that the
business has become g well defined one
and has in II men who do nothing else
but outfit takers. To them goes the bulb
OF the profit. as they are in the bushes,
all lhe tine. while the faker is content. II
T max his GhristnfastSproit and then re,
tire in comfort for. Arrest.
The strain of finding new stocks ane