118 
the rxjrai> new-yorker 
January 25, 
PUBLISHER’S DESK 
The Federal grand jury at St. Louis has 
Indicted Benjamin F. Moffatt, of Chicago, 
charged with using the mails to defraud, by 
means of misleading advertisements offering 
stock in the Buick Oil Co., of California. 
The indictment avers Moffatt entered into 
a contract with the company, a $5,000,000 
corporation, to buy 500,000 shares of its 
common stock at 15 cents a share. He 
then advertised it for sale, it is alleged, 
saying it was treasury stock and that he 
was an officer of the company. Advertise¬ 
ments stating the stock had paid and would 
continue to pay dividends “were untrue 
and misleading,” the indictment charges.— 
Printer’s Ink. 
Our readers heard of this concern 
long ago. A year back many of the 
city papers carried full page advertise¬ 
ments of the Buick stock. 
Do you know anything about the Metro¬ 
politan Car Barns, East 23d street, the 
American Ilygeia Ice Co., 414 E. 59tli St., 
and New York Dept. Store Stables, 140 E. 
25th street, New York, whether they are 
reliable and live up to their word in re¬ 
gard to horses they have to sell? I ex¬ 
pect to be in the market for a team in 
the near future, but don’t want to deal 
with any of these people unless they are 
thoroughly reliable. J. x. 
New Jersey. 
The names assumed by these horse 
“gyps” are very well designed to catch 
the unwary. The name Metropolitan 
Car Barns suggest at once some con¬ 
nection with the Metropolitan Street 
Railway Co., while of course it has no 
connection whatever. American Hygeia 
Ice Co. is designed to lead prospective 
customers to believe it to be the Hygeia 
Ice Co., which is a reputable concern. 
This American Hygeia Ice Co. is not in 
the ice business at all but is a “gyp” 
horse dealer’s firm and has assumed 
this name for the purpose of deception 
and to lure the unsuspicious to their 
stables. Again none of the reputable 
department stores have anything to do 
with the “Department Store Stables” in¬ 
quired about. 
There are a few legitimate houses in 
the horse trade here in New York where 
a buyer will get just about what he 
pays for, but anyone who goes to these 
“gyps” can only hope to get stung. It 
would take a book to describe all the 
tricks of these “gyps.” The favorite 
one is to sell their dupe a fine-looking 
pair of horses for perhaps half what 
they are worth—get a deposit of half 
the price agreed upon. Then a third 
party, who is a confederate, appears, 
makes a big fuss that the horses belong 
to him, and the other man had no right 
to sell them. Then the buyer can take 
a worthless pair at the “gyp’s” price or 
lose the deposit. The horse “gyp” never 
parts with any real money that he gets 
liis hands on. Farmers who may be 
tempted to come to New York to buy 
horses the coming Spring will do well 
to keep this article handy for ready 
reference. 
Last week the Dean Alvord Company, 
Belle Terre Estates, Inc., Roslyn Es¬ 
tates, Inc., Dean Alvord Securities 
Company and the Suburban Construc¬ 
tion Company went into the hands of a 
receiver. The Dean Alvord Company 
was the main company and the others 
were subsidiaries. Their business was 
the development of Long Island real 
estate, realty speculations in Long 
Island real estate. 
These companies made a business of 
buying up large tracts of undeveloped 
land in Long Island. A mortgage was 
given in part payment for as much as 
the sellers-could be induced to accept. 
In some cases these mortgages covered 
the full value of the property, the sell¬ 
ers depending upon developments and 
improvements for increased values on 
their equities; then companies are 
formed to take over the properties, and 
aside from the stock sales, so-called 
bonds or debentures—being in fact notes 
of the company—are sold to finance the 
operation. When we examined the 
Belle Terre affairs a year ago, in the 
interest of a subscriber who had in¬ 
vested $1,000, we learned that the land 
originally cost $827,000, and that they 
had at that time bonds and stocks and 
debentures and debts outstanding for 
$1,139,000. Of course, it did not require 
any prophetic vision to see that the man 
had a bad investment. It will probably 
result in a total loss. The interlocking 
concerns report an indebtedness of 
$3,000,000, and a large part of this is 
the debentures which have been taken 
up by wage earners and small inex¬ 
perienced investors. This is a familiar 
story. From time to time we are called 
upon to report similar failures and sim¬ 
ilar losses. They are practically all 
worked upon the same basis. The sub¬ 
sidiary companies and interlocking de¬ 
vices are so cunningly mixed up in their 
accounts that they defy the investiga¬ 
tion of any but experienced account¬ 
ants. The number of these failures and 
the facility with which they get away 
with the people’s money has got to be 
a scandal, not only to the State of New 
York, but to the whole country. 
This Dean Alvord promotion and fail¬ 
ure has many of the features in a 
smaller way of the E. G. Lewis St. 
Louis, developments, which some mem¬ 
bers of one of our Congressional Com¬ 
mittees felt called upon to defend. Hon. 
William A. Redfield, representing a Long 
Island district, regretted that he was 
not in on the Lewis deals. It seems 
now that Mr. Redfield need not go so 
far from home for investments of this 
kind. The Dean Alvord scheme af¬ 
forded him an opportunity at home and 
Long Island has offered many similar 
opportunities in recent years. As long 
as we send representatives of the Red¬ 
field stripe to Congress and State Legis¬ 
latures to make our laws we must ex¬ 
pect promotions of this kind to flourish 
at the expense of the people. In the 
State of Kansas no such scheme could 
be promoted, and we hope the day must 
come when other States will follow the 
example of Kansas. 
Enclosed you will find a proposal for 
delivery of goods from - - Co. Are 
they a reliable company? Also why they 
do not have their agent deliver the goods, 
as he lives in town and has a horse? 
New York. g. d. M. 
This firm is entirely responsible from 
a financial standpoint, and, in fact, we 
consider them among the most reliable 
concerns doing business through agents, 
but we cannot approve of the methods 
of any nursery houses doing business in 
this way, because so far as their methods 
have come to our attention they are 
subject to criticism from the farmer’s 
standpoint. The only reason we can 
imagine why these nursery houses do 
not employ the same men who make the 
sale to make delivery and make collec¬ 
tions is that the salesmen do not want 
to face the promises and representa¬ 
tions made at the time the order was 
signed when the goods are delivered. 
The rule is that these nursery house 
agents make all sorts of ridiculous 
promises and claims in order to get a 
name signed to the order, and then it is 
very convenient to have another party 
call and make the delivery, who is not 
responsible and knows nothing about the 
promises and agreements made. This 
system of having one man call and take 
the order and another make delivery is 
sufficient evidence to our mir.d that the 
nursery house doing business in this 
way connives at the misrepresentations 
made by the agents. 
Our old real-estate friend, W. M. 
Ostrander, once of Philadelphia, but 
more recently of New York, is at it 
again in a new form. It will be re¬ 
membered that he once incorporated 
himself for $2,000,000. Notwithstanding 
his admitted beauty, many people have 
reason to think the valuation was high. 
Anyway, the people who invested in the 
stocks as well as in the numerous other 
stocks and schemes promoted by Os¬ 
trander never received any dividends 
after the promotion scheme had worked 
out. They got gold bricks, and of course 
lost their money. Some of them played 
the sucker the second time under the 
Ostrander allurements and promises of 
recovering their losses on new schemes, 
but the second attempt has always proved 
as disastrous as the first. Now Ostran¬ 
der wants to instruct 100 people in his 
real-estate schemes. The privilege is 
limited to 100, mind you. These are to 
be instructed in his peculiar and ex¬ 
clusive methods of getting money from 
the public without giving much of any¬ 
thing of value in return for it, and, of 
course, the pupils are to share the spoils 
with him. To us it looks as if Ostran¬ 
der had worked the game out. The 
people are getting on to him personally. 
Hence he wants to pick up a little confi¬ 
dence and respectability in local sections 
through association with others. In 
other words, he will give you an oppor¬ 
tunity to fake your neighbors, provided 
you share the spoils with him. One 
recommendation we give him. Those 
who are contemptible enough to go in 
with him on the scheme could hardly 
find a more accomplished and success¬ 
ful instructor in the art of selling gold 
bricks. 
"I went to one graduating affair that 
I really enjoyed.” “What was that?” 
“The graduating exercises of a cooking 
school. One girl’s essay consisted of 
chicken croquettes cooked in full view 
of the audience and passed around for 
us to sample. And there were other 
essays just as good. One very fine thesis 
consisted of a cherry pie.”—Washington 
Herald. 
J&2m£mcam 
&Cks Inc. 
Office No. 3891 
Philadelphia, 
(20) 
WHEN‘S 
HgW 
A New Buggy 
For a Dollar’s Worth of 
Lucas Carriage Gloss Paint 
A buggy is only as old as it looks. 
Your buggy will look new, if you 
treat it with a coat or two of Lucas Carri¬ 
age Gloss. Gives a high gloss. Dries 
quickly. Applied one day and vehicle 
used the next. Lasts a long time. 
Also freshen up the buggy top with Lucas 
Top Dressing. It protects and lengthens 
service as well as beautifies. 
Just as good for Autos, Bicycles, 
Go-Carts, Sleighs, Radiators, etc. 
are the best of their kind. Made of ma¬ 
terials not only selected as pure, but proved pure 
by four exacting tests. 64 years experience goes 
into every Lucas product. Made in the best 
equipped factory in the country. The men in 
charge have been 25 to 40 years with us. The 
finished paint has to pass most rigid tests by 
chemists, practical painters and color experts. 
Always dependable and good in every way. 
Free Book “ w ^ n P " a n ^ t ” ow 
tells just the things you need to know about paint 
to enable you to select the right kind. It also tells a 
what paint, varnish or enamel to get—what kind e? 
of brush to use, how many coats to give, how long 
to let dry, etc., if you want to refinish fur¬ 
niture, beds, walls, floors, implements, 
vehicles, etc. This book is worth many 
dollars to you. We send it freoupon receipt 
of your name and address and that of your 
nearest dealer. 
Lightness of Draft 
ease of operation and sturdy 
strength are features that make 
The Johnston 
Out Throw Disc Harrow 
(Old Continental) 
n machine favored by thousands of farmers for 
every kind of discing. Independent removable 
standard sections. Convex center bumpers 
for each gang. Steel discs and scrapers, easily 
adjusted. Other parts of highest quality and 
convenience cause every owner to say: 
“Certainly ! Buy a Johnston’* 
Fully described in the Johnston 1913 Catalog, 
which also contains valuable implement infor¬ 
mation and m. , , . 
tdis about 1 he Johnston 
the famous \\ »i , _ o 
Johnston line of IiarVCStCr (.0. 
farm machinery. \\ , Box 100 F 
Copy sent FREE Batavia 
on request. Now York 
AIR 
4II Sizes for Heavy Duty Farm Engines 
SUPPLIES THE TOWN WITH WATKK 
Gentlemen: 
We want to tell you how well pleased we are with 
the - NEW-W \ V ’’ 334 H.P. engine we purchased of 
you over a year ago. 
It has been used for 
pumping water for 
the town supply and 
have had no trouble 
with it in any way, 
nor inado any repairs 
in it during this time. 
We consider the air¬ 
cooled feature a 
great improvement 
over the water cooled, 
as it simplifies the 
'perating of the e»- 
■gino and keeps it at 
the proper tempera¬ 
ture all the time. We 
have just installed a 
new pump with a ca¬ 
pacity of 35 to 40 gal¬ 
lons per minute and 
the engineis handling it in fine shape. 
CHAFFEE WATER WORKS CO., Chaffee, N. Y. 
U. B. Charles, see. 
Kit! Th i'Hew-Wa yHmt Cexrun 
No. 5 Lamsjkq. Mickisam. US.A. 
Cheapest and best light for homes, 
stores, factories, churches and public halls. 
Makes and burns itsown gas. Brighter than 
electricity oraretylene. Cheaper than kero¬ 
sene. Over 200 styles. Agents wanted. 
Write for catalogue. 
~ "XJHE BEST LIGHT CO. 
401E. 5th St„ Canton. O, 
1 SQHACE 
THE MODERN GARDEN 
with its long, narrow rows that require thor¬ 
ough and constant working,M U ST nave tools 
that are easy to adjust and operate: that sow, and 
cultivate perfectly. Many farmers who have steam 
heat and a telephone are still using old-fashioned 
tools. Do YOU use a hand hoe? 
Seed Drills and 
Wheel Hoes 
save half time, make bigger and better crops. 
The view shows one of 38 combinations Irotn $ 2.50 to 
$ 12 . 00 —our No. 6 Combined will sow in continuous 
' rows or in hills, cultivate, weed, hoe, ridge, open 
furrows, etc. Parts changed quickly. Can pur¬ 
chase in simplest form and add to as needed 
Ask your dealer to show these tools and write 
us for new booklet, “Gardening With Mod- 
w ern Tools." We make full line of j>otato ^ 
machines,sprayers lor all purposes,etc. 
Bateman MTg Co A 
Box A <>21, 
Grenloch.N.J-^^^’SAYES 
HARD 
WOIUL 
FARM 
CUSHMAN 
Power (0 Run 
Your Spraying Machines 
A powerful little 4 h. p. engine. It 
is very light and runs steadily. Will 
hold high pressure for , 
spraying. ^ c *I aIo O 
Original 
a Binder 
Engine 
Get this 
Engine fop All Work 
Churn, run the separator, grind, 
pump, etc. Weighs under 200 lbs. 
Take it wherever you want to use it, 
fits in any place. 4 cycle, automatic 
throttle governor,easy speed changes, 
Consumes fuel according to work; 
no waste. Speeds to 5 h. p. when nec¬ 
essary. Write for free book and see 
how it will make and save you money. 
We also build 6-8 and 20 h. p. heavy 
duty engines. Tell us your needs when you 
write for the book. Address 
CUSHMAN MOTOR WORKS 
2091 N St.. Lincoln, Neb. 
Gear Driven Magneto 
is built right into the engine and 
entirelyeliminates batteries, theirex- 
pense and troubles Won’t wear out or -v 
get out of order. Throws a big, hot spark in 
any weather that never weakens nor fails. Can’t 
burn igniter points. 
LAUSON FROST KING 
Gasoline Engines 
Starts Easily.—The Frost King starts on the magneto without turning over. 
Requires no cranking. Positively Frost Proof. 
Takes Less Fuel and oil and delivers more power be- 
cause of special features and design. Replacements due to wear 
and breakage are all but eliminated by having the parts case- 
hardened or fitted with adjustments. 
Perfect Balance.—Every part is accurately ground and fit¬ 
ted. Engine stands perfectly quiet even under lull load— 
another proof of durability. 
Satisfaction Guaranteed—or money returned. 
Shipped quick from all transfer points. 
Write for catalog stating power re¬ 
quired and name of Lauson dealer. 
The John Lauson Mfg. Co. 
218 N. W. St. New HoUtein, Wi*. 
2 
