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Show GRAFTER'S FERTILE FIELD. Revenue For Vendors of Electrical Frauds in Gotham. The American people, according to the late Phineas T. Barnum, like to be humbugged. Many persons can be made to believe -that an electric generating gen-erating machine always resembles two large spools of green silk set tip on end. If they learn differently they are amused at their former belief and proud of their get-ativeness. Electricity Electrici-ty is such a mysterious thing, with something of the black art about it, that nothing seems to be too marvelous to be accomplished by it, and many im-posters im-posters have reaped, and for that matter mat-ter are. still reaping a rich harvest by making use. of the ignorance and almost al-most childish confidence" which the investing in-vesting public has in old and new and startling discoveries in electricity, says a correspondent of the Pittsburg Gazette. Ga-zette. The electro-medical appliances which usually can be "writ down" as frauds, with the exception, possibly, of the X-ray, are too many to detail. They are no worse than quack medicines, except that they cost more. Inasmuch as they are not taken internally, excepting, ex-cepting, again, the subtle beam through the human frame of the powerful induction in-duction machine, they can- do little harm, and may do good. The modest dealer wilt ask you $50 for a medical cell which, it is declared, will deliver an electric current by being placed on cracked ice; little neck clams on congealed con-gealed water would give better results. The wonderful thing. about t medical battery I saw "worked", the other day is that it required but one wire to convey con-vey the current, there being no return wire or ground connection. The cell, with . its adjunct of frappe, is to be placed on the carpet and the victim on a hair mattress no better insulation can be desired. Oh, it is a great graft. Electric combs, electric corsets, electric rings, pins, brushes and what not are found in the holiday advertisements. It would be unfair to suppose their dispensers dis-pensers were, in all cases, trying to "do" the people into believing their wares contained or were capable of generating an Edison or a Westing-house Westing-house - current. The word "electric," used in such connection, must be considered con-sidered as an adjective expressive of delight accruing-to" the purchaser. It is as tangible as a lover's kiss over the telephone. ' |
