The Bismarck tribune. [volume] (Bismarck, N.D.) 1916-current, 1932-10-15
Member Of Audit Bureau Of
Circulation
Beware the Wolves

Beware the Wolves
Despite the insult disclosures and
the information given to the public
by the senate's probe of Wall Street
at the last session, the financial
wolves are busy again.
The mails are again beginning to
bear offers of cut-rate prices on mar
ket outlook services and when this
happens it is time to hang out the
Beware" sign where all who run
may read.
The reason is that too many of
these services are conceived in ini-
guilty and operate to pick the hard
earned dollars out of the public
pockets. Some services are recog-
nized as sound, informative sources
of financial news and this fact makes
it easier for those who have shady
stocks TO unload and who may be
here today and gone tomorrow. The
market information services which
are legitimate, however, never at
tempt to sell you anything, and
therein lies one of the main differ
ences between them and their dis
reputable brothers.
Hark to how the system works.
You get an offer in the mail today
inviting you to pay 81 for trial
subscription to a service which is
represented to sell for $50 or more
year. 1t explains that you receive
FOR your money the services OF ex-
perts in the investment field. Little
modesty is evidenced in outlining
their superior qualifications Some
times there is an invitation to write
to them for further details.
Whether the man addressed sub
scribes or merely makes inquiry, his
name is placed on a sucker list"
and the promotion effort begins.
The original offer of the service
call it Browns for want of a better
name, listed some 20 stocks which il
recommended be sold and similar
number which it urged the customer
to buy. All but one of the 40 listed
were stocks of well-known and re-
putable companies. Call the nave
rick international Manufacturing"
The next weeks issue contains fur
ther information and advice and
points to the fact that this or tina,
stock acted as predicted. One O,
more is sure to have done so. Afte,
this runs along little while to builc
UP confidence, you get a wire from
the headquarters of the service urg-
ing you to buy the strange stock anc
predicting that it will make a rapic
rise. At the same time it urges yo,
to sell one or more Of the stocks pre-
viously recommended and on which
had you bought it, you would be abb
to realize profit.
A few such kilograms and tn,
stage is set for the final play. 70,
get telephone call from New Yorl
and an oily voice, assuming that 20,
have made the profits suggested ii
previous forecasts-ignoring the loss
es you might have sustained had 70,
bought everything recommended
suggests again that you buy Inter
national Manufacturing"
The man is an expert and h
catches you unawares. Before tn
average man knows it he has invest
ed from $100 to $1,000 in the stoc
mentioned. The stock, at the tim
you buy, is selling at fair pric
but shortly thereafter the bottor
drops out of the market for it an
the investor has taken a loss of fror
80 to 100 per cent.
Browns investment service prob
ably paid 20 cents for stock which
sold to the public at So. The dit
ference, less the cost OF the promo
ton, IS profit.
When the international Manu-
featuring" deal is washed up, Brown
service digs up new security of lit
Ic
starts all over again.
This sort Of thing was common
the days from 1927 to 1929 but th
racket has not been worked muc
during the last two years. Now tn.
the public has begun to show lit
interest in securities the wolves al
busy again.