Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1906-08-26

cessful man or woman. II Is advice that
should be followed by every purchaser.
The place of abode Of the dishonest sales
man who sells fourteen ounces of sugar or
quart Of beans instead Of dry-measure
quart, as well as the dealer who sends
from 200 to 240 pounds of coal short to the
ton, is limited to no certain territory, but
on the contrary. he is found in all COM
munities.
Much has been written from time TO
time about the great frauds perpetrated
on the American people, yet l doubt II
there Is any method or scheme worked
upon our people wherein the loss Is as ex-
tensive as through the system OF weights
and measures. The purchasing public OF
the country is mulcted annually through
loss by short weight or short measure TO
an amount equal that lost through bank
failures or insurance swindles.
Cheating and trickery by weight or
measure is not new fraud. 1t has been
praoticed for years past, and Will be prac-
ticed, undoubtedly. for years to come, In
spite Of the vigilance which the states
maintain to stop it. Sleepless nights have
been spent by many dishonest geniuses IN
concocting novel schemes and planning IN
ventions to cheat the unsuspecting public.
Formerly the dishonest dealer was content
to have q set of light weights or set or
short measures. In these days of enlight-
eminent he must use more modern imple-
ments to battle the customer. Some of the
cities have started museums which are al
ready we'll stocked with different tmple-
ments of false weight and measure. which
have been confiscated by their officials so
cleverly constructed are many of them that
they are worthy of places beside the para
phernalia of counterfeiters seized by the
secret service officers. and would make an
interesting addition to the collection OF
curios at the National Museum. Indeed, II
is understood that the national bureau OF
standards Is considering the advisabliity or
asking the loan OF some OF these conhs-
Gated curiosties as a nucleus for public
museum at their handsome new labora-
tories in the District of Columbia.
* \
"Of the many popular methods of cheat
ing, a few OF them deserve special mention.
Among the more prominent ones Is the
scheme employed by an ingenious mer-
chant in one Of the southern states. who
tied one end Of a string beneath his meat
scale and attached the other end Of the
string to a treadle beneath the bench, 60
that It could be worked with his foot from
the floor. By this method. until discov-
cred, he had always cut steaks to Just the
right weight-never an ounce over or under
what the purchaser had asked for-unless
re-weighed on correct balances, when the
meat proved in all cases to be short-weight.
Another clever scheme out of the ordi-
nary run of tricks was adopted by an alert
Junk dealer, who, having tired Of the
method of cheating by having his scales
out of balance, and fearing detection by
the city authorities, conceived the idea OF
taking a powerful magnet such as is gem
orally used to test the quality OF metal.
which he placed fnnocently' on box be-
meath the weight-end of his scale. In TINS
case the robbery was perpetrated upon the
seller to the advantage Of the buyer. and
the seller had to put enough extra metal
on the scale to counterfeit the power OF
the magnet, which had tendency to hold
the weight-end down.
There are divers other ways of cheating
in weights and measures. The merchant
who uses weights or scales that have been
fixed as well as the one who weighs In
the paper and packing. makes the patron
paw for It at the same price as he does for
the commodity itself. or puts false bottoms
in his measures, or lays fruits and vegeta-
bles in lawful measures in such a manner
as to give less than the law contemplates
YOU should receive, Is still in our midst.
The only way to get rid Of him Is to weigh,
gauge, measure and count all that we buy'
and If the proper amount has not been re-
ceiyed insist upon getting 1t, and withdraw
patronage. Then, and only then, VIII the
commercial world be rid Of this undesirable
e,ement-the thorn in the side Of the hon
est merchant"