Putnam patriot., 1910-02-04
BUYING RUGS N CAIRO
It's a Pisky Business For the
Man F.so Doesn't Know.
IURI.G Oh AN EASY MARK


Mas Worses ~ Crafty Oriental
salesrsn-Under ire Mystic Spell Of
the Dim, Religious Light
Writing OF The Passing Of tie An
t1que Rug" in the Century. John Kim
berry Numford tells this story:
1t Is beyoBd question cheaper 10 buy
In Anerics your rug and the ingenious
tale that goes with 1t than 10 wait IN
I'll you visit Constantinople or Smyrna
or Cairo or Tifis. They are much
more skiflfui and insinuating over
there They hare the advantage of
local color and environment and your
COMMON sense Is under the spell Of the
east TO begin with
Here Is an incident to illustrate 4
party Of rich Americans arrived IN
Cairo one day several winters ago On
q yachting trip snd passed week or
more II sightseeing One Of them had
lust finished palaflai house not FAR
from New York and throughout En-
rope lad bought marbles and bronzes.
H.
lavish hand The journey TO Cairo
vas made in order 10 secure rugs.
What happened Is best told in the
words Of a dealer IN the bazaar. from
whom / had il.
There was q fellow IN our con-
>ern,- be said who was always buy
ing nightmares. and | had 70 work
myself black IN the face to get nd Of
them. The week before the Ameri-
cans cane 10 c1sp hst taken in
shockingiy bad pair Of kirnans. enor-
nousiy big new and to NY mind. Ut
terry unstable When the head Of
the house "a them he held up his
hands and shouted. Get rid Of those
things for : hundred pounds to tie
first person who'll buy them
$50 | rolled them up and put them
ore side intending to send them to a
commission man II the bazaar 70 IN
load Next morning in came Money
bags from New YORK with his whole
COMPANY lie sad be wanted Il see
the best carpets had and be saw
them turaed tie place inside out
Nothing pleased I'm. fer the reason
that / naLs be common mistake Of
showing him leo much. He thought
had something hidden away. 50 be
vinked ne over into one corner and
tod ne who he was New said he.
/ want you . timber up. | want the
hest. ard don't mind price il get
Nhat suits ue-
4 was in despair. for had s<Jually
shown The nan every carpet | tad.
All Of q sudden thought Of these two
freaks baled away the day before
almost laughed in his face but finally
pulled nv mouth down and began
| salaaming and asked him why in the
world be hadn't told NE who be was
| In the beginning. then shouldn't have
wasted bis time and abused his pa
tience 50.
He grinned triumphantly 4 thought
you had them be said.
But said |. IT will take a little
time to get at them. and | must ask
/ you and your friends TO wait pa
tiently.'
They waited. and tell you for the
next half hour the men around that
stairs and unrolled those two rugs.
We bad a great big curtain of green
plush. which we hung against the
vail Then we pressed the carpets
out and put them up against the cur
tain That. you know. Is worth 50 per
cent to the looks. Then We adjusted
the lights and stationed men all
around to look as solemn as worship
ers. Nobody was TO speak above q
whisper. and every man was to muir
muir 'Mashallah" at appropriate inter-
walls.
When everything was ready I ush-
cred the customers up and on tptoe
led them in. There is no doubt about
it. the effect WAS fine AT first every
body was still II was ike church.
All. said the great man. that Is
what | came for. | knew you had
them. You needn't tell me the price
Just send them to the yacht at Alex
andria
That night went up TO the hotel
where they were stopping and got his
cheek fer 6o.oe0 francs for the pair.
And that wasa't the best of IT, had
got into my stride then. and while he
was busE annexiD= the kirmans | bad
the porters bring Up seven OF tie car
pets he had refused downstairs and
showed them IN that di-a religious
light, unroliias them as Il they had
iieen saere1 AMI signing soalfaissT every
now and then. He bought The uaole
seven and 10 tie dav 81 h.s deafa fullv
aelieved that I was tie original WIZARD