The New York herald., 1922-02-13
Continued from First Page.

you imagine that the big bankers made
their money by investing in per cent.
securities?"
Advertisers Help Cleanup.
The Vigilance Committee of the AS
sociated Advertising Clubs of the
World. which is among the agencies
cooperating with the District Attorney
to drive out the bucket shops, has
under investigation ana recently has
issued confidential warning against
a concern peddling bogus stock, and
this was the burden of it's prospectus:
Don't buy like your banker advises
you; buy like he buys,"
1t should be borne in mind, in con-
nection with the campaign for the
victimization of the Liberty bond
holder, that the bucket shops pro
ducer" is dealing with class of people
most of whom know nothing about
stocks and bonds and their market.
Millions of holders or Liberty bonds do
not know what any other kind of
security looks like.
Mr.. Wilson declares that the in
nocence of such holders has been an
incalculable factor in their mis-
fortunes. He attributes to their guilt
bility. as a result or their ignorance,
considerable part of the decline in
Government bond values, through the
additional sales thus brought about
adding to the flood upon the market.
market.
One Trick to Get Libertys.
Having created in the mind of a
prospective victim a distrust Of the
stability of his Government bond, a
frequent trick is to offer the victim an
opportunity to sell his Liberty bond at
its face value when the market is
several points off. This ruse is most
effective. and it is too late when the
seller wakes up to find that the 8 or
10 per cent. security he has taken in
exchange for his Liberty bond is virtu-
ally worthless, the broker having paid
a fake dividend just long enough to
make his getaway.
While the bucketeer usually pre-
sumes that almost any victim he picks
up is possessed of one or two Liberty
bonds he does not depend upon that.
He has more reliable information than
that regarding whereabouts of Lib
erty bonds. There are bucket shops
almost without number in New York
that have worked" list after list of
persons who were known to an alb
solute certainty to be owners of Lib
erty bonds. The District Attorneys
office recently investigated at least
two cases in which the names and
addresses of the victims were OBJ
tanned from such lists.
Lists of Liberty bond holders may
be obtained in several ways, although
in almost all instances the bribing of
some clerk or minor official or en-
ployee of a legitimate house is in
volved.
Among the places from which such
lists could be-and undoubtedly are
obtained by illegal methods are banks,
industrial and commercial houses that
sold Liberty bonds to their clients and
employees on the instalment plan,
list of such purchasers being neces-
sary for collection of instalments.
Lists for Transfer Agents.
Another source would be lists of
transfer agents. Such list usually
shows the names of many large in
vestors in securities of all sorts, and
the bucketeer deduces with high
percentage of accuracy that the names
indicate also the holders of Liberty
bonds. That the bucketeer is able to
not only victimize the small holder
but also the man who is familiar with
money in large amounts is indicated
by the instances cited.
In addition are the names and ad-
dresses available from the probation Of
wills, already mentioned. Representa-
tives of bucket shops keep a sharp eye
for all records giving indications OF
legatees. particularly inventories OF
estates for inheritance tax, which be-
come public records when filed, as re-
quired.
It appears that the bucket shop op-
orator does not frequently make any
considerable effort to interfere with
trust funds, but he is ever on the alert
fee an outright bequest.
This propensity of the bucketeer to
mount watch over the estates of the
dead is responsible to an amazing ex-
tent, for the large number of widows
who are among the victims trailing
into the Office of the District Attorney.
Widows, usually inexperienced in busi-
ness because their husbands had at
tended to financial matters, are ripe
pickings for the producer" expert
enced in the ways of instilling con-
fdence and giving advice.
First the Cash, Then the Bonds.
In a large number or cases the Lib
erty bond holdings of victim are not
touched until all the victims cash Is
gone. That procedure is followed by
the bucket shop operator deliberately.
The Liberty bond. representing as 1t
usually does the savings Of the small
holder is turned loose with some re-
luctance when any spare money is on
hand. Therefore the bucketeer usually
gets his victim into such "hard luck"
on the market that he is able to take
all his money away first. Then comes
the call for the Liberty bonds.
a case under investigation by Mr..
Wilson illustrates this method-which,