London's Heart: A NovelFarjeon, B. L. (Benjamin Leopold)
General
London's Heart: A Novel
Farjeon, B. L. (Benjamin Leopold)
London (England) -- Fiction
The advertisements and circulars contained a great deal more than is
given above, and the most infamous artifices were used to fire the
imagination of clerks and apprentices; for it was really from such
unfortunates as these that Mr. Sheldrake and his confederate netted
the greater portion of their large gains. They pointed out how those
who desired to speculate might commence in a small way, and creep up
gradually, until they became wealthy; and many weak men and boys
studied the figures, and borrowed or stole to make the venture--which
indeed was no venture, but a certainty; for it is needless to say that
no penny of the money sent to the garret in Glasgow ever found its way
back. To some extent, a semblance of fair dealing was kept up, and
where Messrs. Montague and D'Arcy thought they saw a chance of the
dupe being farther duped, they forwarded him a tabulated statement
showing how his money had been invested upon the wrong horses, and how
he was in their debt a trifling sum. This statement was accompanied by
a lithographed letter, detailing how all the race-meetings upon which
the speculator had not invested had turned out marvellously
profitable, and how the particular race-meeting upon which he had
desired his money to be invested had, "for the first time during the
past five consecutive seasons, turned out a failure." However, they
consoled their unfortunate client with the assurance that at the
race-meeting which would take place next week "winning was reduced to
an absolute certainty," and that, as there was not the slightest
chance of losing, they trusted that their client "would take their
advice, and invest £25, £50, or £100, and realize a few thousands
forthwith." Remaining his faithfully, Montague and D'Arcy. Of course,
if more money were sent, it shared the fate of the first; and
notwithstanding the groans and curses of those who were thus robbed in
open daylight, the ball rolled on right merrily. No one knew that
Messrs. Montague and D'Arcy were identical with David Sheldrake and
Con Staveley. Their faces were never seen in the transactions,
everything being conducted under seal, and no personal interviews on
any consideration ever being allowed. And in the event of some irate
clients making the name of the firm and their address notorious, it
was the easiest thing in the world to change their names and take
another garret, perhaps in Edinburgh this time instead of Glasgow. It
is but fair to some of the sporting papers in which these lying
advertisements were inserted for the trapping of apprentices and
others, to state that in their "Answer to Correspondents" such answers
as these appeared week after week: "An Anxious Inquirer. They are
swindlers." "A. Z. You should not have trusted your money to them."
"R. H. C. We do not recommend Discretionary Investments." "Fair Play.
You have been swindled." And many others to the same effect. But they
continued to open their columns to the advertising knaves, who,
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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