Putnam patriot., 1916-02-25
EditOrially Speaking
Re Occurring sainGIes

LIE fANtAkaAN 1AV44=tt itt4Ati7 sHt " lesson in tae gigantic swiadie peFps. tfaied bE Dr. ; GnuJ Ismae, a.ias J. H Pntaam. whose trusting tieHHs showefed him Wilh seeeui hurafei Thousand dollars fur worthless stocks. Itafges She people lode lhelf tfsaiaR win reliable bnslness men at home. All Of ihe new papers If the stale, ia fact of the county, from lime lo time draw lhis same lesson from like ex- amples but if Is never learned Every village, town and city has had Us eX- pefience and the strange part Of | Is that the experience k ohtime repeated. However, fl il were not for the gulllbly inclined The sharks lwould disappear and there would be no more such stories.
 In Putnam perhaps the two swindles that occur most regularly afe lie fake advertising schemes and the buying on instalment plans. In the first instance it is steal pure and simple The aagent" arrives in town with some scheme of advertising and collects his money in advance. He disappears, complaints nre entered and there il ends. The agent has gone 10 parts unknown. The victims pocket their loss md whit for the next oppot tunity to contribute.
 The second scheme is worked almost continuously. Do mol let us be under stood 10 efitieiss the legitimate selling on insta lment by reliable business houses. The buyer generally pays q long price in dealing wilh them, but, however, fl he gets his goods from reliable house he Is often able To have goods, bought in this manner, that he could mol get in my other way. The scheme we have in mind is where some unknown concern, out Of town, sends in an agent with proposition 10 collect ten cents or quarter week until the payments reach certain amount when the contributor k To be given the choice of merchandise to the amount, furniture, n suit, n garment or other thing as the case may be. He does not stop here. As an extra in ducement he stntes that there are weekly drawings and that the con tribntor may get hts goods the first or second, or some other week, before the full amount is paid in. After one or two wellknown people are allowed to "drawp the prize ns an advertisement nothing more is heard of this featnfe. When lhe time draws near to ensh in fof goods the neent fails to appenr my more and the victims make complaint. The authorities nake an investigation find that lhe concern has closed its Temporary quarters and departed to new and unknown fields. lhe sehemv has been worked over and over in this ely regardless Of the close lookout ol the police. IL Is Illegal and fraud but lhe people are ever willing to take .chnnce notwithstanding many les sons and many warnings
 There Is nothing under the sun, whether paper of pins or gas, gold or copper stock, that can not be purehas ed from reliable, home dealer in the commodity. Why people will still pefsist in trading with agents and dealers whom they do not know, wholly unreliable, and entru,t to them their money, often in advance, Is beyond comprehension. But they do it and persist in il notwithstanding the law and the officials engaged in enforcing the law try to protect them from themselves. Buy al home from your own reliable dealer, k a motto, which If followed, will make men richer, If not wiser. The wisdom gained from such experience is costly. The same wisdom may be gained from the experience of others If people would not shut their eyes to the lesson.