Evening Republican, Volume 20, Number 16, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 19 January 1916 — FIND MANY SUCKERS [ARTICLE]

FIND MANY SUCKERS

Post Office Inspectors Amazed at Credulity of People. Ordinarily Clever Persons Fall for All Sorts of Fake Schemes—Stock Swindle Favorite Bait "*"terlhe "Gullible. Washington.—The records of the post office department, and more especially of the head of the post office inspectors, show that a large part of the American people still love to be humbugged. The inspectors marvel at the credulity of Some citizens who give up their hard-earned savings in one wild grab for riches. Only on rare occasions are banks, even the smaller ones, caught in the crush which follows the exposure of a fraudulent concern. Some of the schemes are extremely clever, while others are crude, but somebody always “falls” for them, clever schemes frequently attracting intelligent persons whose credulity is amazing. Not long ago a bunch of postal cfbbkq were on trial In Kansas City, charged with operating fake mining companies. They had ten or twelve different companies going at one time. One of the witnesses was a Virginia farmer who thought he was pretty smart. “Yes,” he said to an inspector, “this company is a fake all right. I admit I was stung on its stock, but I’ve got right here certificates of stock in several other companies that I know are all right. Their stock is increasing in value right along.” . - _• The credulous Virginian was asked to display his wares. He did so. He was horrified when informed that the men on trial were promoting all of the companies in which he was a stockholder, that all were fakes and existed on paper only. A favorite scheme with the fake stock concerns is to start the sale of their stock at ten cents a share. After a time, when the “suckers” begin to bite well, the price is boosted to 15 cents. This convinces them that there is something in the company, and they buy more. The stock keeps rising to perhaps 30 cents, when-an announcement is forthcoming to the effect that the company has secured all the moiiey it requires for capitalization.

Shortly afterward funds are required for “promotion,” and another scheme is started on its way. Not infrequently the “promoter” of one fake concern will advise persons who are seeking to purchase more stock that the lists have closed, but that he has been able to purchase a block of another stock which some concern was forced to let go of and can sell it very Cheap. This usually brings in the “long green.” One scheme of the Kansas City bunch was to send out in advance letters soliciting shares of a certain stock at 20 cents each. Persons receiving such letters had nibbled before, of course. After a short time another letter would come along, ostensibly from an entirely different concern, offering to sell this same stock for, say, ten cents. Having a week or so before received an offer of 20 cents for this identical stock, persons receiving the second letter sent in their subscriptions, receiving in return a bunch of worthless certificates. After the receipt of the fake certificates they would get into communication with the concern or individual offering to pay 20 cents per share for it, only to learn that all the stock desired had been secured from other persons meanwhile. The only explanation which postal experts can advance for the degree of credulity shown by persons who get into the tolls ot mall fakers and frauds is that most of them probably have worked hard all their lives and, seeing what appears to them to be a rainbow of promise pointing to ease M>d plenty-for old age, take one grand. leap after another —the number depending on how hard they are hit each time and how much money they bavin,