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Show In The Mail i'he Editor The Pyramid Mt. Pleasant, Utah Sir: Out-of-state deaf peddlers and imposters are becoming more active in Salt Lake city and Og-den, Og-den, as well as in other towns in IJtah, and have become a problem for the honest and respectful re-spectful deaf people of Utah, as well as of the United States. They are known as "Beggar-peddlers" "Beggar-peddlers" or "Sympathy-peddlers" who make this kind of profession permanent, through .he help of the kind-hearted public. pub-lic. They sell needles, key-chains, key-chains, bandages and other worthless articles which sells, if at all, for more than they are worth, while for the most part, they are not really sold. People Peo-ple put money in the "hat" but do not take the trinkets. Manual Man-ual alphabet cards, which can be obtained free of charge for asking from any deaf person, are being sold by peddlers. It was said that a few years ago, five persons with good hearing were arrested in Alabama for posing as deaf people and soliciting so-liciting funds with printed cards. These peddlers travel in their own cars from city to city, from state to state, at the expenses of the kindness given by people and stop in a city where the public is not aware of their intention in-tention of "cleaning-up" with aid of introduction cards and trinkets. There are some nation-wide and . local, organized groups working independently and are working in different cities ci-ties on their own accord where thev can stop and go. It is said, one made $4,600 in 16 weeks, one $75.00 per day, one $40.00 in 3 hours of work, and others a large sum of money. They work a few hours a day and keep on getting more money each day than really needed for living expenses. ex-penses. Peddlers and imposters display dis-play queer and surprising reactions reac-tions which would not be made among normal hearing people. When one peddler stopped, unknowingly, un-knowingly, at the residence of an honest deaf person and found about her deafness, he grabbed the card and trinkets he used and disappeared as quickly as he could. Whey do they show this kind of actions toward honest, hon-est, deaf people who have the same handicap as the deaf peddlers have? Utah is becoming known among deaf peddlers as an easy place to make money which goes against the pride of all honest, hard-working deaf people peo-ple everywhere. Your tax money is spent in maintaining the School for the Deaf in Ogden, Utah, and Gal-loudet Gal-loudet College, the only college for the Deaf in the United States, in Washington, D. C, to educate deaf persons and to help make them respectable citizens of Utah and the United States. Many deaf people have filled your expectations of them by becoming an asset to the public, and have good jobs, families and homes. Furthermore Further-more the Community Chest does not have any funds for deaf people. Deaf people the same as other citizens contribute to the Community Chest, Red Cross and other authorized charities. As a whole, we deaf people are proud of these facts and want to be equal with hearing people in standards of living. The profession of begging and peddling is not advocated by deaf people. Number and activities ac-tivities of deaf peddlers and imposters can be reduced to a minimum with help and cooperation coop-eration from the public in refusing re-fusing money to deaf peddlers and imposters, regardless of their claims of having peddlers' licenses. We, the deaf people of Utah, as well as of the United States, ask the public to REFRAIN from giving money to deaf peddlers and imposters. (Signed) The Utah Assn. of the Deaf Robert W. Walker, Pres. Salt Lake Div. No. 56 N.F.S.D. John Palmer, Pres. Ogden Div. No. 127 of N.F.S.D. Robert Welsh, Pres. |