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Show Visual evidence affords most convincing proof, as evidenced evi-denced in the old saying, "seeing is believing." This being true, one has but to look on page 11 of the Literary Digest of March sixth to 1'ind convincing evidence of the extent to which the people of the United States are being victimized by slock and bond swindlers and fake security salesmen. The Digest presents an aerial view of the city of Pittsburgh, Pa., a city of six hundred thousand inhabitants and with property valuations of a billion dollars, and states that this great city could bo reconstructed annually with the sum that the class of salesmen referred to coax from the pockets and strong boxes of the gullible. The picture accompanies an article by Frank J. Williams in the New York Evening Post, who declares that America's losses from stock frauds are four limes that from burglary, larceny and petty theft; ten times the forgery total and four times the loss caused by trade frauds, and would in twenty years pay off the national debt. These facts show the necessity of an active vigilence committee commit-tee in every community, to whom all matters of stock and bond prchase should be referred before investing. The writer estimates that in New York state along five hundred millions of dollars were lost through this class of investment last year. Mr. Williams states: "Investigation shows that the fake security salesman is 11 distinct type and that it is next to impossible for him to live honestly. He studies his part carefully, to the smallest detail of his dress. He is a phsychologist who diagnoses tinman credulity and stupidity with the precision of a medical practitioner. He knows human weaknesses and just the extent ex-tent to which he can prey upon them. He possesses powers that are almost hypnitic and he is one of the most vicious rriminals of the age. "A large percentage of the people who lost money Hi rough the fraudulent practices of financial crooks last year parted with life savings. Many of them were women, and many of them were cripples and invalids. Hundreds of elderly elder-ly persons, past the age of financial recuperation, were among the swindlers' victims. "All the worthless securities are not sold to the humble and the ignorant. Men in the so-called higher classes, in the professions, and in business, fall as often and as hard as ' the farmer. A survey made recently by the New York University Uni-versity Bureau of Business Research, based on data collected from fifteen States and covering a period of three years, showed that the business man stands high on the list of purchasers of worthless stock. "The survey disclosed that no section of the country j'.nd no class in "society is spared from the evil of security swindling. There was a relatively large number of salesmen in the list, and many dentists, doctors, lawyers, auditors, accountants, bookkeepers, clergymen, professors, students, advertising men, brokers and bankers; men, shrewd in their own lines, but who were not able to combat the appeal of the stock salesmen." The article cites as a safety measure the slogan of the Better Business organization: "Before you invest, investigate." investi-gate." In this connection, also, the New York American advises: "Remember these things: Don't put your money into anything that you don't know all about at first hand from top to bottom. "The opportunities to make a fortune overnight in faraway far-away land, in oil, in radio, in motor stocks never go begging. The people who know about those things will make the money. "If you have an opportunity to invest, ask your savings bank about it. The officer of any savings bank will be . glad to tell you a safe investment, at slightly better interest than a savings bank can pay, just as soon as you have your first thousand dollars in the savings bank." In this connection H. C. Hicks, secretary of the State Securities Commission has sent out a warning to Utahn's to be particularly cautios at this time of investing in oil Uucks. Finally, it is a good thing to recall that "it is better to Le cafe than sorry." |