The watchman and southron. [volume] (Sumter, S.C.) 1881-1930, 1911-02-18
TO PROTECT GULLIBLE.
Proposed Legislation To Save Easy
Marks From sharks"

clerk Of the Massachusetts Sen;te a
bill designed to put an end tc ne
'get-rich-Quici" cOncerns-the / cas-
ure being one similar to a law now
in force in Connecticut, Iowa, Utah,
| Idaho, Montana and Wyoming, and
based upon a law which has been up
on the statute books OF California,
ard a statute under which many
present the only law which reaches
the particular form Of fraud covered
by this act is the old law Of larcenv
by false pretenses. 1t is urged that
the using of this law with effect is
extremely difficult with the modern
jury. This is not altogether compli-
mentary to the modern jury, being
an intimation that bubbles and tech
nicalities carry more weight than
fundamentals. AT any rate, in his
petition the Senator represents that
the criminal statutes Of Massachu-
setts extend Slight, if any, protection
to her people against the making or
publlshlng of false or exaggerated
| statements of or concerning the at
fairs, pecuniary condition or property
Of any corporation, joint stock osso.
citation, copartnership or individual.
and that. for the proper protection
| Of the people, and for the protection
Of investors in general, his bill should
be added to the statutes OF the Com
| monwealth.
Accordingly, the measure provides
that any person who knowingly makes
| or publishes, or cause to be made or
published, in any way whatever, or
| permits to be so made or publish
| ed, any books prospectus, notice, re-
port, statement, exhibit or other pub
LEGATION of or concerning the affairs,
financial condition or property Of any
corporation, joint stock association,
cOpartnership or individual. which
said book, prospectus, notice, report,
statement, exhibit or other rublica-
ton shall contain any statement viii IN
is false or willfully exaggerated, or
which is intended to give, or which
shall have Il tendency to give, a less
or greater apparent value to the
shares, bonds or property of said cor
poration, joint stock association, CO.
| partnership or individual, or any part
Of said shares bonds or property than
said shares, bonds CT property or any
part thereof shall really and in fact
| possess, shall he deemed guilty of 4
felony, and upon conviction thereof
shall be imprisoned for not more tran
10 years or fined not more than So
600, or shall suffer both said fine and
| imprisonment.
1t strikes us that the proposed law
not merely hits the fraudulent get
| rich-quick concerns, but may be
made a club with which to whack
those corporation managers who have
been in the habit of concocting fin
ed to give the impression that their
concerns are struggling to keep away
| from the precipice Of bankruptcy.
! when in reality they are what the old
New England phrase describes as
well fixed" or even better. Think
of a corporation treasurer being sent
Y ,n;l n
stated the value of stock in process
at $1,000. when 10 times that figure
would not cover the value Yet that
particular form of the wave Of NOR
ality which insists that everybody else
must tell the truth would come nearer
to engulfing his devoted head Per-
haps, practically there would be no
danger Of punishment for a man who
misrepresented by the value Of his be-
lOngings by depreciating them, but
prosecuting officer might come along
with a determination to make truth
his guiding star, and the guiding star
Of all the other people as we'll In
| tnat case, we SnOuld nave some raUh-
er novel issues for the courts to ad-
! judcate.
! The bill is, of course, another Of the
| numerous devices Of which one sec
! ton of modern society seems to be
fonda Legislative contrivance to
protect the people from suffering the
inevitable consequences Of their own
ignorance and their own gullibility,
also their overwhelming desire to ac-
quire possessions with great rapidity
without working for them. All the
promoters of the get-riCh- quick en-
| terpriseS assume this disposition in
about so many people as the fun