Evening star., 1915-06-03
TELLS HOW TO DETECT
FAKE deaf" BEGCARS
Circular Describes the Tricks of
Mendicants Who Solicit Aid
Of Strangers.
Makes Declaration That Imposture
Is Observation-Disclosures Show
ing Methods Of Exposure.

| The impostor bureau of the National
1 Association of the Deaf, located at
Vancouver, Wash, is distributing
| throughout the United States a pam
phlet designed to educate the public as
to some of the tricks of those who pose
as deaf" beggars. Such inpostors. it
Is declared, ARE increasing in the
! United States at an alarming rate" A
hale and hearty mendicant, too lazy to
work, 1t is said, recently 'panhandled."
in a couple of days. the sum of s31.75
by masquerading as mute in the lit
tie town of Piqua. Ohio.
Such instances. the national associa-
tion asserts. prove that similar i'm
postures constitute an unjust tax on
the public, which already pays one
tax to support a large state school
where all the deaf are taught useful
| trade and become self-supporting," in
Ohio.
| H. c. Merrill Of 1912 9th street north
| east, Washington representative of the
| National Association of the Deaf, has
| furnished The Star with a copy of the
| pamphlet the association is distribut-
| ing to judges, heads of police and de-
tective departments, and others, In an
| eIlOTl TO arouse the PUBIC.
Quotation From the Circular.
| It states:
"Pitying Judges turn impostors loose
| to work the next town, and surround
ing localities dump theirs back to
| work the first. What more could men,
dicants desire than thus being helped
along. living on the fat OF the land and
| taking In from $40 a day up?
But the harm every impostor does
is more deep and far-reaching in its
ultimate evil effects.
Since the proportion Of deaf to hear
Ing In any community Is SO low the
general public knows little or nothing
about them-mingling with the crowd
quietly passing and repassing to their
homes or places of work. Hence, when
an impostor asks aid the public SUBJ
| consciously acquires a conviction the
deaf are all alike, and are to be consid-
| cred objects of charity.
This erroneous belief. especially on
! the part of the employing class, fire.
| Quently leads to a curt turn down
when capable deaf workmen apply for
positions. The deaf are Disseminated
| against at every turn. Although a ma
| jority are married taxpayers possess
| ing a knowledge of some good trade,
| the popular impression generated by
takers works to their irreparable
| harm-and this holds especially true
! in periods of Industrial depression.
against this vicious evil the Ameri-
can deaf are uniting from coast to
coast-lobbying for impostor legisla-
tion, keeping press and police posted
and vigorously prosecuting all sus-
poets.
THE general public is warned the
wisest thing to do when accosted by
a deaf beggar is to detain him while
some one stealthily summons an Of
ficer-but not SO loud the faker can
hear The officials can then call a real
determine if he is taking"
Instances From Records.
The following instances taken from
the records of various police courts Of
the country show, the pamphlet points
out, some ways in which fake deaf
persons have been detected in the
past:
"'You are deaf and dumb was ask
ed, sympathetically. Too bad, poor
man. How long have you been In this
condition.
about two years. answered the i'm
postor without thinking.
"Sixty days" said the Judge"
There's bug on your collar" sud
| denly shouted a patrolman. The accus-
| ed turned his head quickly, as though
| to look for himself, but evidently real
| lied that the remark was a ruse, and
| did not speak.
| "He was accordingly held on suspi-
cion and on being confronted by real
deaf man finally admitted the lmpos-
| ture.''
"As a last resort an infallible French
| scheme is described herewith: The
| subject, wearing any overcoat. stands
| in front, but with his back turned.
| He is instructed to the effect that he
| should be able to distinguish the feel
J ing of a brush passed down over his
| back and the feeling of hand execut-
| ing the same movement. This fact is
| illustrated by an experiment with
! each, the subject noting the difference
in his sensations. Then the hand is
| rubbed down the subjects back, while
| at the same time the observer passes
| a brush down his own coat which
should be of material similar to that
of the subjects.
Next Step in Program.
"Next the brush is passed down the
subjects back, while the hand is
moved down the observers coat. Thus
the operations are reversed, and these
| alterations are continued for some
| time.
soon the subject who is able to hear
ceases to be able to tell which move
ment is going on his back. His
brain receives simultaneously an i'm
| preston from his ears and one from
! his back. In consequence, he confuses
the two and is utterly at a loss.
! The deaf man, however. is never de-
ceived, for the simple reason that he
is compelled to depend wholly on
( tactile sensation. His brain receives
only the one impression, that OF touch,
and, therefore. he is easily able to dis
\ tinguish precisely what Is the cause
F.; of 1t, whether brush or thumb"