The New York herald., 1922-02-14

nowhere more apparent than in the
positors. The readiness, the actual
gratitude with which such depositors,
once their confidence is gained by a
bucket shop, turn over their funds to
these swindlers is the most pitiful of
all the stories that are poured into the
ears of the investigating and prose-
cutting powers.
The loss of such money in almost
every instance represents not merely
shattered hope in the failure to re-
ceive the promised profits of tie
bucket shop deal but 1t is the wreck
ing of the results of years Of hard
work and systematic, painful self
denial. It is a blow that strikes at
the very hearthstone of the home and
with telling effect on TIE citizenship
and social and economic welfare of
the nation by the penury of parents
and the ignorance of children it en-
tails.
OF course the bucket shop is not at
all particular about how it gets hold
of a savings account--just so 1t gets
it---or in what sequence It comes in re-
ton to other assets of u victim. The
records OF investigated and prosecuted
| cases, however, do show well de-
| fined trend of system when 1t is ap-
parent to the bucketeer that 1t is only
question of time and cleverness un-
til he will have his victims every
penny.
Call for Margin Wrecks Account.
] That system usually is revealed in
pursuading the customer" to gam
BILE" first with whatever ready funds
he may have--a bequest or some un-
expected income--until such money is
we'll tied up in a supposed deal which
suddenly requires a heavy deposit of
margin. Then the bucketeer compels
his victim to draw out his savings In
desperate hope of saving the money
he already has turned loose.
This use of savings usually is in a
margin transaction supposedly - in
which the victim is wiped out and his
money pocketed. But before this hap
pens the bucket shop does not forget
Liberty bonds or other securities of
value which the victim may own.
Such securities usually are wheedled
or frightened out of possession of the
victim as collateral for a loan. the
money, of course. to be used by the
broker" so that II never gets into
the hands of the borrower. The
broker" then prevents his customer"
from recovering possession of his Sc
curities through the simple act Of
grand larceny.
AS was shown In yesterdays article
regarding the manner in which Lib
erty bond owners are swindled
bucket shops are able to locate their
intended prey with fair degree Of
accuracy through lists of known own
ers of Liberty bonds, the lists having
been obtained from various sources
and by questionable means.
Nothing would please the bucketeer
more than to be able to obtain similar
lists of savings depositors. But such
lists are not so readily obtainable. In
fact. there is virtually no manner in
which list OF known owners OF saw
ings accounts can be obtained except
through bribery of bank employees or,
In the case Of postal savings, Of Fed
eral employees.
Forty Per Cent. Arc Dcpositors.
But even without the aid Of such
lists 1t is not difficult to find savings
depositors, since about one out of
every two and half adults in New
York city has n savings account. In
cidentally. those deposits amount to
more than s1.300,000.000, not incon-
siderable temptation to any sort Of
robber. The figures take into con-
sideration depositors in savings banks
only. leaving postal savings and other
accounts.
Thus, the bucketeer fairly safely
can count on about 40 per cent. of TIE
public having savings account. Any
sucker list" therefore. gives him the
names and addresses OF persons OF
whom he may reasonably expect
nearly half to be depositors in savings
banks. And he can get all the lists OF
names he wants by paying one and
half cents name to legitimate con-
Germs which make II tteir business to
compile lists Of names OF thousands of
classifcations.
The foregoing explanation OF the
situation is simply to show that II Is
not Difficult. matter for the bucket
shop operator TO hnd savings deposit
Touf;uuad IN paua o(w