168 
THE RURAL* NEW-YORKER 
February 1 
PUBLISHER’S DESK 
THE SUCKER LIST. 
If you get booklets by the bale 
And endless offers in the mail, 
With schemes that have a funny twist, 
Your name is on the sucker list. 
If you get word about queer bonds 
In asphalt wells or naphtha ponds, 
You're due to grind some fellow’s grist 
Who has you on the sucker list. 
If strange stocks daily come your way 
Along with promises to pay, 
That soon dissolve in merest mist, 
Your name is on the sucker list. 
—Louisville Courier-Journal. 
Recently a subscriber took objection 
to our reference to a sucker list of a 
notorious promoter on tbe ground that 
he was on the list, and protested against 
the suggestion that he assumed as per¬ 
sonal. The time was when it might be 
considered a reproach to be on a 
“sucker list” because the lists were 
made up exclusively of people who had 
become a dupe through get-rich-quick 
advertising; but of late years men make 
a business, and, it is said, a profitable 
business, of making up lists and selling 
them to concerns who make a specialty 
of gold-brick promotions. No one is 
exempt from such a list. You may be 
on it without your consent, and even 
against your protest. The rhymer above 
reveals some knowledge of the “sucker 
list,” and evidently understands how it 
is made up. 
I wish to inform you that January 15 
I received my pay from the Crayl Ex¬ 
change. I think they must have seen last 
week's It. N.-Y. and thought it best to set¬ 
tle. They inform me they are going to 
move to larger headquarters, and would 
I like to make something specially pretty 
to exhibit for sale at that opening. I 
think it is safe to say I will keep out of 
it and advise others to do the same. I 
thank you again for the work you put into 
the matter for me. I feel sure it was 
through you that I got my pay. J. g. 
Massachusetts. 
Sometimes .our friends give us more 
credit than we deserve, but whether 
the influence of The R. N.-Y. was re¬ 
sponsible for the settlement or not, we 
want to give the Crayl Exchange credit 
for making the adjustment even at this 
late date. 
One year ago last October my sister 
sent $1 to the Woman’s Exchange, 380 
Main Street, Springfield, Mass. She was 
to make fancy work for them to sell, for 
which they charged a fee of 15 cents on 
the dollar for making the sale. They pro¬ 
fess to want work only from needy per¬ 
sons, and as she needed a little extra sent 
them articles valued at $18.75. They re¬ 
ceived tbe sample and also the goods. She 
could get no reply from them, but finally 
they asked for a list of the goods, which 
she sent, but has heard nothing further. 
Through a friend she learned some of her 
goods had been sold, so she asked the 
Exchange to send her the amount due and 
return the balance of the articles. They 
have not complied. e. w. b. 
New York. 
This letter speaks for itself—we have 
written tbe so-called Woman’s Ex¬ 
change twice, but received no response. 
The experience of this lady should 
serve as a guidepost to others who may 
be tempted to patronize these schemes. 
I bought two cars of grapes for Samuel 
Brooks, commission merchant, Newark, N. 
J. during Fall of 1911 and had them 
weighed on our public scales. When he 
received them he claimed they were short 
the weights I sent him, and he cut me 
short $5G.1G; $45.16 of the amount is due 
tbe men I bought tbe grapes from and the 
balance is due me for service rendered. 
The last letter I received from him con¬ 
tained a check for $7.70 and he writes on 
it ‘‘In full settlement.” I have not cashed 
it, as I did not like that kind of a settle¬ 
ment. I have all the weights and corre¬ 
spondence. J. D. K. 
New York. 
The subscriber acted as Mr. Brooks' 
agent and bought the grapes at $30 per 
ton including the trays. Shrinkage is 
estimated at about 400 pounds to the 
car. Part of the grapes were weighed 
on city scales and part on Mr. Brooks’ 
scales. The grapes weighed on the city 
scales show an average higher weight 
than those weighed on Mr. Brooks’ 
scales, and the city scales practically 
agree with the subscriber’s weight at 
the farm. However, we were unable to 
get any satisfaction or adjustment on 
the deal. The experience emphasizes 
the necessity of caution as to the char¬ 
acter of the commission houses with 
which they deal. 
E. G. Lewis is reported to have a new 
scheme. Having dropped $10,000,000 
more or less of other people’s money 
in his 75 or 80 St. Louis schemes, large 
and small, he. is now going to Califor¬ 
nia, it is said, to get possession of 
23,000 acres of land on which he pro¬ 
poses to establish an “ideal colony,” at 
an expense of $10,000,000 more. It is 
given out as new, but is, of course, the 
old Lewfe scheme of giving big future 
promises in exchange for present cash. 
There may be a few people foolish 
enough still to continue to send money 
to Lewis, but after the showing up of 
his schemes in the press, in the courts 
and before the Congressional committee 
which investigated his complaints against 
the Post Office Department, we do not 
believe that sensible people will again 
bite on his tempting bait. His St. Louis 
operations were a scandal to the coun¬ 
try, and while he escaped punishment 
for the losses he caused the people who 
trusted him, it is a matter of satisfac¬ 
tion to his victims, as well as to the 
country at large, that the nature of his 
operations then was revealed, and that 
he is no longer a danger to widows, 
children or other inexperienced investors. 
Men saying they represented a bath 
tu)» and heater company of Detroit, Mich., 
and operating in Marshall County, are 
being sought by the authorities on charges 
of swindling. William Shafer, a farmer, 
was fleeced out of $4,000, mortgaging his 
home to obtain money to buy bath tubs at 
a ridiculously low figure and on which 
he expected to make $10,000. The swind¬ 
lers took the money, but no tubs were de¬ 
livered and the existence of the firm can¬ 
not he determined. The Indiana authorities 
say that the men who operated in Mar¬ 
shall County under the name of Dewey 
Bros., cleaned up $200,000 in operations 
in Iowa. Marshall County farmers will 
lose $10,000.—Exchange. 
Tbe above from Indiana carries its 
own suggestion. Look out for the pro¬ 
moter who wants to make you rich so 
fast. 
Readers will recall that \V. II. Harri¬ 
son, of the World Manufacturing Com¬ 
pany, Cincinnati, O., was convicted some 
time back on the charge of fraudulent use 
of the mails through the operation of 
the World Manufacturing Company in 
the sale of the Easy washer and the New 
Home vacuum cleaner. He was sen¬ 
tenced to three years in Federal prison, 
but appealed the case through the 
United States Circuit Court of Appeals, 
where the judgment has just been re¬ 
versed. The court admitted the charge 
that the language of the advertisements 
and the circulars was extravagant, and 
that the evidence showed that the money 
was not returned promptly as promised 
for washers and cleaners that were not 
found satisfactory; that instead of re¬ 
turning the money and accepting the 
goods as promised an attempt was made 
to induce the holder to keep the goods, 
to give them further instructions as to 
the use of them, or to replace them with 
others in an alleged tire-out process; but 
the court held that these were not essen¬ 
tially criminal acts on the part of the 
defendant, inasmuch as the records 
showed that refunds had actually been 
made in many cases, and as an alleviat¬ 
ing circumstance in other cases the de¬ 
fendant had pleaded financial embarrass¬ 
ment in the fulfillment of the obliga¬ 
tion. It is not stated whether the case 
will be appealed to the Supreme Court 
or not; probably not. The decision 
plainly puts a business interpretation of 
such promises up to the people them¬ 
selves. The court allows considerable 
latitude to the promoter of such sales 
in the way of exaggeration in the cir¬ 
culars and advertising. It seems to us 
that it rather goes back to the old prin¬ 
ciple, “Let the buyer beware.” 
The R. N.-Y. refused Mr. Harrison’s 
advertising years ago and gave its rea¬ 
sons for doing so. These reasons were 
not only because he exaggerated the 
merits of his goods, but also because he 
neglected to make the return of the 
money as promised, within what we 
considered a fair interpretation of the 
agreement. We are in no way criti¬ 
cizing the action of the court in this 
matter. We are inclined to think from 
reading the decision that a prison sen¬ 
tence may well enough be considered 
rather severe punishment for the offense 
proven, yet when a publisher is obliged 
to refuse the advertising of a house be¬ 
cause of annoyance to his readers 
through the patronizing of the adver¬ 
tising, there is certainly something radi¬ 
cally wrong with the business, both in 
its inception and in its execution. It is 
hard to devise laws absolutely to pro¬ 
tect the people in such cases. The pro¬ 
moters are usually advised by astute 
lawyers. They become skilled them¬ 
selves in avoiding the technicalities of 
the law. To our mind there is often 
no doubt about the intent to deceive and 
to defraud in many cases where the 
evidence is not sufficient to convict. A 
judge may be satisfied in his own mind 
as to the guilt of a defendant, but where 
the evidence is not sufficient to convict 
he must give the benefit to the accused. 
The press and the people themselves 
must assume the burden of keeping pro¬ 
moters in check. j. j. d. 
Test Your Dairy Salt 
The salt you use in butter-making 
should not be bitter. Test it thus : 
Make a little salt brine from the 
salt you are using and taste it. If it 
leaves a bitter flavor in your mouth, 
change your brand. 
Worcester Salt leaves no bitter taste. 
That’s why it’s best for butter. 
WORCESTER 
SALT 
The Salt with a Savor 
Worcester Salt is also best for both 
cooking and on the table. Its grain is 
fine and evert. 
For farm and dairy use, Worcester Salt 
is put up in 28 and 56-pound bags. The 
bags are made of the best 
quality Irish linen. Get a 
bag from your grocer. 
Send us your dealer’s 
name and address and we 
will mail you free of charge, 
our booklet “Butter-mak¬ 
ing on the Farm.” Con¬ 
tains many valuable hints for 
dairymen. 
WORCESTER SALT COMPANY 
Largest Producers of High-Grade 
Salt in the World 
NEW YORK 
*Hew e/kMand* 
Stone Crusher 
Good roads, concrete sidewalks, stable floors, 
troughs, etc., will add hundreds of collars to the 
value of your property. New Holland Stone 
Crushers are powerful, rigid, easy and cheap to 
operate. Will pulverize all stone for your own 
use—crush stone for your neighbors and town¬ 
ship and make big money. whole Free 
month’s trial free. Write for 30 days 
catalog and low prices. , /jjSKnU^ trial | 
NEW HOLLAND 
MACHINE CC 
Box 41,New 
Holland, 
Pa. 
Easy to start 
Costs least 
to operate. 
Most de- 
p e n d- 
able. 
Farmer's 
Friend 
Gasoline Engines 
Built in three styles: port¬ 
able, semi-portable 
and stationary. 
l.t-hsOIIX >Q. 1 
J. B. NORTON CO., Inc. 
23 Ellzaboth Street 
Distributors 
Utica, N. 
THE BEST 
FARM ENGINE 
MONEY CAN BUY 
jjjjjSSjT Simplest, most compact, easiest 
running farm engine ever designed. 
I'iyr Light but exceptionally strong. Few parts— 
^nothing to get out of order. All parts acces¬ 
sible and standardized. Ask us to show you why 
Brownwall Air-Cooled Engines 
I are the best investment you can make. Uses less 
I and requires less attention than any engine of its 
J on the market. Send today for lull 
i information and details of our 
l special offer to you. 
i Drop us a postal now. 
The Brownwall 
„ Engine&Puiley Co. 
323 Michigan Avt., 
Lansing, Michigan 
► that Pay. $637,530 made by cli¬ 
ents. Patent Book—“What & 
___ How to Invent—Proof of For- 
tunes in Patents” FREE. 112-p. Guide. Bend Sketch for 
report. E. E. Vrooman, Pat. Atty., 838 F St., Wash., D. C. 
PATENTS , 
p «mrh p e s 
can clear an acre or tnoro 
of stumps a day. No stumps 
can resist the Hercules. 
Doubles land value—enables 
to make $1200.00 on 40acres 
the first year after stumps are 
out—and $750.00 in crops 
after. Get the 
Why not 
1 
Write Us Now 
Book tells all the 
many 
photos and letters 
from owners—tells all 
about the many Her- 
features. We’ll 
also quote you a special money-saving price 
proposition that •will interest you. Address 
HERCULES MFC. CO, 13021st St., Centerville, Iowa 
SAW WOOD 
Saw your own 
wood and save 
time, coal 
and money; 
your neigh¬ 
bors and 
MAKE 
$5 to $15 a DAY 
Hundreds are doing it 
with an APPLETON WOOD SAW 
We make 7 6 tyles—steel or wood frame 
—stationary or mounted on truck with 
gasoline engine, making a 
“Portable Wood-Satcing Rig 
Rigid frame, lathe-turned arbor, running 
in self adjusting, non-heating, dust-proof 
boxes makes our saw frames simple, 
strong, safe and succesful. 
We also make the famous 
FRICTION-DRIVE DRAG SAW 
APPLETON CIRCULAR LOG SAW. 
Ask for our complete free catalog. 
APPLETON MFG. CO. 
627 Fargo St„ Batavia, III. 
FREE 
For a limited time, 
we will give abso¬ 
lutely free a can of 
Riemer’s Shoe Life 
with every pair of 
Riemer’s Wood Sole Shoes or Boots 
It’s a perfect dressing for Riemer’s or any 
other work shoes, boots or harness. 
Riemer’s Wood Sole Shoes should be worn 
by every fanner. They are light, durable, sanitary, 
[water-proof and far superior to leather or metal soled 
shoes. A trial will convince you. If not 
at dealer’s send us his name and 12.50 
for Shoes or $3.75 for Boots. We pay ex¬ 
press charges. Money back if not satis¬ 
fied. Illustrated booklet free. 
A. H. Riemer Shoe Co. 
2911 Vliet S treat 
Milwaukee, Wia. 
COOK YOUR FEED and SAVE 
Half the Cost—with the 
PROFIT FARM BOILER 
With Dumping Caldron. Empties 
its kettloinoneininute. The simplest 
and best arrangement for cooking 
food for stock. Also make Dairy and 
Laundry Stoves, Water and 
Steam Jacket, Kettles, Hog 
Scalders, Caldrons.etc. t^“Seaa 
for particulars and ask for circular J 
D. R. Sperry & Co., Batavia. 111. 
MILK CAN COVER EXPANDER 
MAKES OLD COVERS NEW 
TIGHTENS LOOSE RIMS 
AND STRAIGHTENS 
DENTED ONES INSTANTU 
GUARANTEED TO PLEA8E 
PRICE, 98.50 EACH « 
VVISNER MFG. CO.. New York Citj 
j 7 “Everything For Dairymen Alwavi 
In Stock ” 
MORE POTATOES PER ACRE 
Think of finding one to'eleven #5 bills 
in the furrow, on every acre you . 
plant. It’s been done many 
times. Plant the spaces you 
skip, sell the potatoes, 
and you’vc got the mon¬ 
ey. No extra land, 
no extra work. 
It costs no 
more to 
prepare 
ground, 
fertilize 
cultivate, 
spray and 
dig a per¬ 
fect 
stand 
This 
' _ m a - 
chine soon 
pays for it- 
selfand yetputs 
real money into 
your pocket. Ohe seed 
piece in every space and 
oneonly. Uniform spacing. 
No Injury to seed. Ask 
your dealer to show It 
and write us for free 
booklet, “/oo per cent 
Potato Planting ." we 
make full line Potato 
machines,Garden tools. 
Sprayers, etc. 
BATEMAN M’F’G CO. 
Bo* 102(1 Grenloch, N. J. 
