320 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
[August, 
take.” Probably this gives the insects tender and 
acceptable food ; they eat the lettuce, and let the 
other plants alone. 
A. teacher of a Select School in 
Pennsylvania sends us a copy of a 
circular with which, as he says, he 
is “ occasionally pestered.” The 
circular is of a Boston concern 
which apparently offers great in¬ 
ducements to engage in the sale of its so-called 
“ Silverware.” These are shrewd fellows, for they 
“ put on airs,” and caution the public against other 
concerns in the same trade. Boston seems to be 
the headquarters for a lot of dealers who should be 
let alone. If one buys silverware at a price below 
the real value of such articles, he deceives himself. 
Many prefer to purchase plated ware, as the loss in 
case of robbery is less, and if good at the start, it 
will last in use for many years. Genuine plated 
ware is to be had, but 
The only Guarantee 
for the quality is the reputation and honesty of the 
maker. To the inexperienced thinly plated ware 
looks as well as that of better quality. Our advice 
is, to buy such articles only of regular dealers 
whose word may be taken as to quality, and to let 
alone all those “Companies” who profess to offer 
wonderful bargains in plated ware. 
Variety Circulars. 
These pernicious sheets are sent far and wide. The 
chaps who issue them get hold of the school and 
college catalogues and mail them to the students. 
Parents should be on their guard, and know what 
kind of printed matter their sons and daughters re¬ 
ceive by mail. It is within our own experience 
that matter of the vilest kind is sent to mere chil¬ 
dren, and even directed to the care of their parents. 
We have before us one of these sheets, issued in a 
small town in Massachusetts. It offers various 
books, of a kind that, judging from their titles, 
young people ought not to have. Among other 
works are: “The Real Secret Art and Philosophy 
of Wooing, Winning and Wedding.” There is a 
long list of contents, which promises the know¬ 
ledge of many “ mysterious things.” Then there 
is “ Old Aunt Dinah’s Fortune Seeker’s Sure Guide 
to Lucky Dream6 and Lucky Numbers ”—which is 
merely a guide to “ policy ” gambling. Other 
works, apparently innocent in character, are offer¬ 
ed, but the general tenor of all is decidedly bad. 
“The *’** Corresponding: Club” 
still sends out its pernicious circulars, proposing to 
bring people into correspondence “ With a view to 
Mutual Improvement, Amusement, or Matrimony.” 
This thing should be stopped. No doubt the post¬ 
master at the small place whence these circulars 
are issued knows of their contents, and we advise 
him to promptly stop sending them to save trouble. 
“The American Marriage Alliance 1 ” 
still continues its circulars. We confess that we 
have little patience with those who inquire about 
the responsibility of these “ Marriage Insurance 
Companies.” If there is anything in this world 
too sacred to be a subject for gambling, it is mar¬ 
riage. We do not care whether these concerns 
will do what they propose or not. Any one who 
will take stock in them, does not deserve a good 
wife. We can not say if the Ohio concern is more 
reliable than the Pennsylvania shop. Our advice 
is, to let them all alone. 
Accusing the Wrong Man. 
We have in illustration of this a letter headed in 
large letters, “Fraud,” which accuses one of the 
best known nursery firms in the country of send¬ 
ing through their agent, whose name and address 
is given, many hundreds of fruit trees which were 
bought for choice varieties, but which will prove 
to be a fraud. The writer claims that the nursery¬ 
men referred to have sent out a lot of “culls” 
and refuse stuff, and asks us to come and investi¬ 
gate the matter. There are some persons, even in 
the nursery business, who have a reputation above 
suspicion ; and as the trees in question have passed 
through other hands, we advise our complaining 
correspondent to look to these parties for redress. 
We are sure that the nursery firm he accuses will 
give proper attention to any respectful complaint. 
Electricity and Magnetism 
turn up in a great variety of forms. One can not 
walk far upon the streets without having thrust 
into his hands a circular of some “Electric” or 
“ Magnetic ” affair. We have a circular of a 
“ Magnetic Shoe,” which is not only to prevent 
“ Hot or Cold Feet,” but is to prevent Corns, Bun¬ 
ions, and all sorts of feet ailments. But what are 
these partial affairs to those garments, of which 
there are several, with formidable looking eyelets, 
which propose to envelop the whole body with a 
“Magnetic,” or “Electric,” or “Galvanic,” or 
some other-“ ic ” influence ? There are some 
diseases, which, as experienced physicians well 
know, are best treated by amusing the patients. 
It is probably in thus amusing the patient, that 
these various gimcracks may seem to have a use. 
“Medical Matters” 
always make up a goodly share of our Humbug cor¬ 
respondence. Some of these it is impossible for us 
to answer. For example, a correspondent on L. I., 
asks if he shall take the agency of a certain “ Pad.” 
He assumes that we know all about the thing, and 
sending no circulars, inquires “ whether it is a 
fraud or not.” Aswedonot know what the “ pad ” 
is made of, we can not advise him. If he does not 
know what it is, he had better let it alone. It is a 
peculiar human weakness, to believe that something 
from abroad, in the way of medical treatment, 
must be better than that which can be had near 
home. Quacks understand this, and those who 
live in large cities, advertise extensively in distant 
papers. As a consequence, we get inquiries about 
parties who make great claims as physicians, who 
are not known in New York as practising medicine, 
and who, when hunted up, are only to be found in 
some obscure place. We recently had an inquiry 
of an advertising doctor, who claimed to be 
A MEDICAL INSTITUTION, 
and as he gave us his address, a place not very far 
from our office, we made a call at the place. The 
address of the individual who represented the “ In¬ 
stitution,” had been changed. At the time of our 
inquiry, he could have been found on Centre Street, 
at a public house called “ The Tombs,” where he 
was confined on a charge of sending obscene litera¬ 
ture through the mails. Our friend who wishes us 
to “ find out if the Institution is all right or not,” 
is advised to consult the neatest physician for his 
“ liver trouble,” as he may be sure that those doc¬ 
tors who live in New York, and other large cities, 
and are trustworthy, do not advertise in distant, or 
any other papers, nor do they call themselves “ In¬ 
stitutions,” “Universities,” or “Dispensaries.” 
Journals at a Distance 
are becoming cautious in the matter of accepting 
advertisements. Instead of complaining that they 
have been swindled by this or that advertiser, they 
now ask, before publishing the advertisements, if 
the parties are reliable. An inquiry from publish¬ 
ers in Canada, concerning some patent medicine 
chap, was recently investigated. Our associate re¬ 
ports that he found the number indicated, but that 
the only “medicine” dispensed was Lager Beer. 
Many of those who advertise so loudly at a dis¬ 
tance, can only be found at such obscure places, 
and we are glad to know that our friends who pub¬ 
lish journals at a distance, are exercising care. 
David’s Prize Soap—[liottery ?] 
When the eminent chemist, Liebig, asserted that 
the degree of civilization reached by a nation could 
be measured by the amount of soap it annually 
consumed, he had not heard of this remarkable 
soap of David. Ordinary common soap indicates 
that a nation is given to cleanliness, but David’s 
soap carries with it no end of luxuries. A show¬ 
bill of this soap is a wonderful work in black and 
red ink, and second only in its absolutely 
“stunning” character, to the announcement of a 
circus or a horse-race. This show-bill offers to buy¬ 
ers of the soap, a remarkable list of prizes, to be: 
given away—not at a “ drawing ”—oh no ! but at a 
“presentation.” Among the prizes are a “Brick 
House and Lot,” United States Bonds, Horses and 
Carts, Gold Coin, Pianos, Diamond Jewelry,, 
Watches, Tea Sets, and numerous other things, 
down to Velocipedes and Refrigerators. This is 
not a regular lottery, but the wrappers call for 
tickets, which are not sold, but are given away as a 
“ reward for using David’s soap.” David makes a 
handsome show-bill, and displays much ingenuity 
in trying to get around the law against lotteries. 
David’s tickets have been seized, and the proprietors 
of the lottery have been arraigned before the courts,, 
but a decision in his case, has not, at our going to 
press, been rendered. All former decisions show 
that this soap-prize distribution, comes under the 
law against lotteries. The fact that the gambling 
is concealed under the name of a “ presentation,” 
has not been of any avail in other cases of a similar 
kind. Indeed, the courts have regarded as an ag¬ 
gravation of the offence, this attempt to associate a. 
lottery with an article in common use in every 
household, as it familiarizes domestics, children 
and others, with a most pernicious form of gamb¬ 
ling. The suit against the 6oap-lottery will be 
pushed, and when we learn of the decision, will 
make it known. In the mean time, it is interest¬ 
ing to know that all former decisions have been 
most emphatically against this form of gambling. 
An Organic] Trouble 
turns up every now and then. Certain country jour¬ 
nals, attracted by what seems to be a liberal offer, ad¬ 
vertise the Piano and Organs of “ the Mendelssohn 
Piano Co,” to the amount of $35, which will entitle 
the publisher to a “Home Jubilee Organ,” of that 
price—if he can get it—or the amount ($35,) can 
apply to a higher-priced instrument, the balance to 
be paid in cash. This proposition to give 
AN ORGAN IN EXCHANGE FOR ADVERTISING, 
seems to be a one-sided affair. The parties get ad¬ 
vertising, but the advertisers get no organs. There 
does not seem to be any $35 organs ; the company 
claim to have so many cash orders for other and more 
costly instruments, that they do not get any chance 
at these cheap organs ; but they are always ready 
to accept a “ balance in cash,” and send any other 
style of organ at a higher price. We exposed 
this trick some months ago.—If the publishers of 
country papers had taken the warning we then 
gave, they would not now be asking us to help 
them get the promised organ. 
Inheriting: Foreign Money. 
There are many thousands of people in this coun¬ 
try ready to indulge in hopes of falling heir to the: 
property of some deceased distant relative in Old 
England. Scores of thousands of dollars are every 
year spent in investigating these illusive claims,and 
certain parties accumulate wealth by fostering such 
notions and pretending to have special facilities for 
investigating them. We have yet to hear of the 
first success in actually securing the hoped-for 
money from such sources. 
“ Next of Kin” Swindle Successful in England. 
There have just come to light extensive frauds in 
the vicinity of Birmingham, England, by means of 
which multitudes of persons have been swindled 
out of small and large sums, amounting to a great 
many thousands of dollars in the aggregate. A 
company styling themselves “The Intel-national 
Law Agency, ” avowedly established to discover the 
heirs and next of kin for receiving $37,750,000 at 
present in Chancery awaiting claimants. A suite of 
offices was rented in Birmingham, and branches an¬ 
nounced in London, Manchester, Glasgow, etc.,with 
import ant “ agencies ” set New York, and Melbourne, 
Australia. Advertisements were sent out inviting 
all parties bearing the common names of Smith, 
Johnson, White, King, Wood, Roberts, Wright, 
Scott, Ward, Mason, Green, Griffith, Davis, etc., to 
send their address, lineage, etc., with a small re¬ 
mittance to cover preliminary expenses—perhaps 
only a postage stamp or two. From the great 
number of answering people, a host of victims were 
