Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1918-05-12
RANDMA BUNKER. seated in
her rocking chair in her room
in Mrs. Winners select
h.,ea 1onkeH I'm

H. her rocking chair in her room
N.7 in Mrs. Winners select
W boarding house. looked up
from the newspaper she was reading
and shook her head sadly.
MY, my, Jabez,' she exclaimed.
"Ain't it dretful the way these here
xrafters is always grating. Seems like
the world is gettin dishonester from
day to day"
Seems so, ma" admitted Mr.. Bunker.
He had been reading his favorite work.
."rbe Complete Confessions of the King
of rGrafters. A Full Exposition of All
the Methods of All the Most Noted
. Confidence Men. Price. Twenty-Five
Cents" But. ma he added. there's
more'n one kind of graftin'."
Y dare say said Mrs Bunker. plac-
idly. But the more I read of the
wickedness that's goin' on, the gladder
I am you took up nice. honest BUSH
ness like bunco. When 1 think how
Satan always finds work for idle hands
to do, I'm more'n pleased you didn't
stay out 70 Oroduna Iowa. dom noth-
ing: There's no tellin' what naughtf-
instead of occupying yourself with
nice clean line of confidence-man
wdrk."
.e'Taint that alone, ma" said Mr..
Bunker. Somebody is bound to take
the easy money away from these New
Workers.. and 1 figger I'm doin' a good
work to take it myself. instead OF let
tin some other man take it. Some
other bunco man might Spend the
money in dishonest ways.
Mrs Bunker agreed with this heartily.
Ever since she and her husband had
come to New York she had watched
Mr.. Bunker's operations with keen
eye, jealous lest some faint of dishon-
esty might creep in and threaten his
whole-souled honesty of heart and
mind.
The difference between a citizen of
oroduna. Iowa. and a dweller in New
York is that the dweller in New York
waits to be buncoed regularly. once
week, during life. 1t is sad but true
that at no time in the history Of Man.
haitian Island has the supply OF bunco
demand Something to this effect had
been told Mr.. Bunker bv the cashier
of the Oroduna Bank, and 1t was this
that had induced Mr.. Bunker to adopt
the profession of confidence man and
bunco steerer and come to New York.
IF Mr. Bunker had had the slightest
idea that bunco steering was an i'm
proper occupation he would not have
embarked in it. His soul was as
sweetly innocent as the soul of babe,
pu6gy nose and general plumpness he
looked like a cherub with chin whis-
kers.
But you'll be careful, Jabez." Mrs.
Bunker continued. mot to be drawed
INTO any Of this graftin' the newspapers
are maxim such a ruction over, wunt
you?"
Ma" said Mr.. Bunker. there's
graftin' and graftin'. and they amt a
mite alike. Now. this here book I
RI ha h,,n ont af &c
called. right on the cover. The Con-
fessions of the King of Grafters.' Now,
this here political graft-like se1lin' a
nomination for a judgeship-is criminal
is crook. And givin' money to a Teller
to get him to buy spoiled meat for the
Army is as crooked as sin. All them
kinds of graft is wrong. But some
folfs has way Of CALM all kinds Of
buRco steerin' and confidence work
graft
We'll. of course, Jabez." said Mrs
Fusker, Il didn't mean nothin' like
that"
Z reckon you didn't" said Mr..
you knew there was two kinds of graft
bid graft and honest graft"
For a week or more Mr.. Bunker had
done no business whatever. This did
not however. disturb his placid soul.
HiS success since coming to New York
had been SO great that he had more
money than he had ever expected to
have, and he had given UP the petty
forms of bunco work that had inter-
ested him at first.
The next day after the little CONVEX
ga ton with his wife on the subject of
honest and dishonest graft. Mr.. Bunker
went down to dinner alone. He thought
his wife might have gone directly from
the street to the dinner table. but she
was still missing and SO was Mrs.
WINNER This gave Mr.. Bunker no
uneasiness. because he knew the two
ladies had been spending the afternoon
& re,;sf sncis,1 nres;ded "s 80 az ' he
Lady Barr-Foskins, on 5th avenue, and
II was safe to say that as long as Lady
Barr-Toskins or any other lady whose