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\* JTKe Rube Crop | Confidence Men Cleared Up $10,000,000 Last Year p -?* Chicago, May 6?The American con :~- fldence man reaped a harvest of more than $10,000,000 last year, according to figures compiled by Chicago .au thorities. This is the approximate - amount actually collected from the credulous public by professional con fidence operators and does not in clude the millions gathered in annu ally by the various stockjobbing ?schemes. The crude devices of the old time confidence man, with his shell game, tnree card monte, gold brick, green goods, money changing and lemon games, have given way to modern methods more complex, and more profitable. The really successful confidence men of to-day usually have summer k<? and winter homes, ride in limousines and are aided by richly gowned wo ... 'men, authorities say. They are edu cated and far more clever than their i:\ brothers of old days, whose favorite f trick in Chicago was to sell the Ma sonic Temple to a "rube" for a small sum, or agree to make the building "turn around.'* Land selling schemes, peddling of worthless mine and oil well stock, wire tapping, and "fake" sporting events are now the hand maidens of . the modern confidence man, who matches wits with the banker, cap italist and lawyer, instead of dealing with the ignorant ruralite. Nearly all the victims of a Chicago gang re cently sent to the penitentiary were bankers and business men. The gang's loot aggregated more than half a mil lion dollars a year. Pear of publicity keeps most vic tims quiet, thus giving the high class confidence man a' certain, degree of immunity, authorities say. They add that federal prosecution for using the mails to defraud has been a big fac tor in breaking up gangs, and recently brought about conviction of half a dozen leading confidence workers. "Tom Brown, who came' from De ? troit and made his headquarters in New York, was father of the present type of confidence man." said William A. Pinkerton. veteran detective, in striking a comparison between the old and new swindlers. "He operated for ty years ago and formerly was a three card mcnte man. He was known as e bunco steerer and won by fake lot tery schemes and other crooked gam bling' devices. Then he invented the gold brick with which he toured the country. The green game came later and Brown had many imitators who picked up thousands annually. Wire tapping and other schemes now used developed from those old games. The modern operators don't bother with small money and often clean up $100. 000 in a single deal. The old timers thought $1,000 a big job. } "Victims are not really honest at j heart, for they often enter into a i scheme to cheat another fellow. The ismall town banker and business man ihas proved a shining mark for swinCi llers. They cannot risk their repnta ? tions by complaining, it is surprising .'how many shrewd business men fall j into the net." ! It is estimated that $3.000,000 of the '$10.000,000 total was obtained in ; Florida where hundreds of confi i donee workers are said to Operate, particularly among winter tourists. Red Cross in Bulgaria Relief Workers Met With Amus j ing Adventures as Weil as ! Hardships j Saloniki, March 29 (Correspond ence of The Associated Press)?Some ?of the more amusing "human inter jest" incidents of the activities of the ; American Red Cross nurses and field ! workers during the repatriation of ; Creeks deported into Bulgaria dur ! ing the war are related by Lieuten ; ant A. S. Bedell, in charge of the I American Red Cross relief stations in Macedonia and Bulgaria, i "We came into Bulgaria on a Ger man freight car," says Lieutenant Be -dell in his report. This Red Cross car j was the first car of the first train jthat ran from Serres to Saloniki after i the armistice and it was with the Red j Cross from the time we entered Bul I garia unil we returned to Greece, j "On the trip out of Bulgaria we [had one iron bed and two camp cots. I One Red Cress man slept on a crate i of biscuit tins, the bed being de mountable to furnish live chairs by i day. The Red Cross man turned over [frequently in the night bringing dis i cord from the tins but despite our protests at his noisy mode of sleeping, 'he declared he had a "rattling good bed'. "Firewood was obtainable along the route and wc were able to use our I woodsiove after cutting a hole in the side of the car for the stove pipe, j Liquid food proved our only difficul i ty. It was impossible to boil even half an inch of water on the stove when 'the car was in motion. We had a real j American coffee grinder. The coffee j beans were put in a clean sock and ?one of the men to the tune of 'Yan : kee Doodle' would crush the beans ! with a hammer. When chicken was wanted for din ner on" of the party would go out; i with half a cap of sugar in hand. \ j wander about the village until he saw i a. 'likely' chicken. which he would I thereupon seize. Th<* native woman] who made the most outcry was pre-j I sumed to be the owner ami usual):. : was glad to accept the half cup of! sugar in exchange. Our much iria : ligned ration of 'bully beef proved : to be acceptable alao. j ''Bartering was the order of'the j day at ali stations. A slice of bread J would obtain three shines, fill a large j water jar or attract a carriage of sup ? plies. During our last afternoon in Dedegatch, on the Aegean Sea, we ?had the use of a horse and wagon all afternoon, in order to return bor rowed furniture, for the payment of j one tin of 'bully beef." i The fame of American Red Cross [relief stations spread throughout [Bulgaria to such an extent that other irted Cross workers and British and! i French officers, including two French ! generals, sough" us out in passing to ? secure a canteen of hot tea or to ; replenish depleted rations." I New Officer Named j j Bock Hill. May 7.?J. T. Fain, re- j ? tiring president of the South Carolina ; Christian Endeavor Union has re j turned from the South Carolina-Geor-j ,gia convention of Endeavorers held inj . Augusta. Ga., the past week-end. He j reports a large attendance of South j ; Carolinians and speaks highly of thej [ hospitality of the Augusta people. The i election of officers for the South Car-j ? olina union resulted in the return of jWyatt A. Taylor of Columbia to his I former position as president of the i union, an office held by him before go- j j ing into the field work of the all-j ; South committee several years ago. j Miss Claudia Fr?ser of Sumter was! Ire-elected secretary and Mrs. Wyatt A. j [Taylor of Columbia was re-elected! treasurer. Lieut. Norwood DuRantj of Alcolu was chosen vice president, j while Mr. Faht was elected honorary! vice president for a period of two j years. j LIVE IN COMFORT DURING THE HOT WE A THER Oar Summer Furniture is cool, light in weight, and pleasing in design. A good variety to select from. O/l ?a i?*nrJiir*t-*rf-k*q on a^ wo?l ra?s offered 4&U Cent IXeUUCllOn forthe next thirty days FLOOR COVERINGS H SHADES D SUITS 9x17 CREX RUGS at - - $13.00 Special-Porch Rockers, $4.50 to 6.50 Sellers Kitchen Cabinets Ue NEW EDIS0N Jennings ? ^Jainey furniture " THE HOME FURNISHERS " West Liberty Sumter The City of Fiume Adriatic Seaport for Which Italians and Jugo-SIavs Are Contending Washington. May i?.?"If Trieste was the Bremen of Austria, Fiume ; was the Hamburg of the Hungarian] Kingdom, a close rival for the brisk Adriatic trade of the period before Lhej wa r.'* says a bulletin of the National j Geographical Society. j The bulletin on Fiume is the third! in a series of geographic news iinll?--I tins dealing with places of the former j dual empire which may fall either to Italy or to tie- Jugo-Slav nation. ''Fiume is another of those foot holds on th<- eastern Adriatic where Italians clung fast despite the steady influx of Slavs in the interior, and. in this ease even into Fiume itself Thus the city bears evidence of early Italian culture, it figured as a potent Slav factor in the turmoil of Balkan politics, and it fell strongly the in fluence of Hungary upon its thriving industries and fast growing commerce. "Magyar gerrymandering caused it to be annexed to Hungary in 1870, de spite the protest of Croatia to which it had belonged since the revolution of 1848-49. Tender consideration for its value as a seaport, rather than for its citizens, prompted its establishment as a royal free town, making it i geographical slice of about seven square miles cut out of Croatia. "Despite the llungarinn interest ii the city its pre-war population was 9 0 per cent Italian and Slav, with the Italians slightly predominant. Only about half the remaining tenth were Hungarians. The Slavs included Croats. Serbs and Slovenes. As im portant to Hungary as are Xew York or I tost on to the United States. Plume's total population is not much greater than such suburbs of those American ports as East Orange, X. J., or Brockton. Mass. "Fiume is situated on the north cast shores of thm Gulf of Quarnero, only seventy miles, by rail, southeast of its trade rival, Trieste. ,- ;ross the bay is the popular summer resort, Abbazia, famed for its evergreen laurel and profusion of roses, to which tens of thousands of visitors formerly thronged each summer. "The older town, distinctively Ital ian, is built on the hillside, overlook ing the gulf. The newer city lies nearer the waterfront. There are three harbors. The largest, accom modating 1.10 large vessels, is pro tected by a breakwater half a mile long. The quay is nearly two miles long. "Before the war Flume's manufac turing plants included a government tobacco factory, the Whitehead tor pedo works, a rice shelling factory, a petroleum refinery, and many smaller plants, among which were saw mills and paper mills. Its fisheries con stituted an important industry. Jt ex ported sugar, grain. Hour, horses ar.d timber. "Fiume had a governor, who was a member of the upper house of the Hungarian parliament, four represen- ! tatives in the lower house, and twoj representatives in the diet of the! Croatians and Slovenes. "Originating in Roman times, Fiume was destroyed by Charlemagne in 7!?9. The Franks ruled it for a considerable period. Then it passed to feudal loids until the Emperor Frederick III made it a part of Aus-j I tria. j This emperor, who was Frederick V, as achhduke of Austria, was tlie ; son of Ernest, tho 'man of iron' and Cymburga, a Polish woman, from ?whom the Hapsburgs are thought !o have inherited the protruding lower i lip which sometimes became a dis j figurement. His long and inconse I quential reign is recalled chiefly be .cause he puzzled lexicographers by 'leaving on his books, pottery, and having inscribed on his tomb, the ini tials "A. E. L O. IV, a promissory note of future Austrian greatness which Frederick did little to realize. Tin most generally accepted explanation is that the initials stood for the Latin. 'Austriae Est Imperari Orbi Universe.' meaning, 'All the earth is subject .0 Austria.' "Charles VI proclaimed Fiume a free port. Maria Theresa first united it with Hungary. Successively occu pied by the French and British it re verted jo Austria and later was restor ed to Hungary before it was ceded to Croatia." Lloyd-George Endorses Salvation j Army. David Lloyd Ceprge ih<- man of the hour Iii England today, when told thai the Salvation Army in America "/as aboui t<> conduct a campaign for funds with which to continue their home service work, cabled Evangeline Booth a strong endorsement of the ca use Following is his message: "British Delegation, "Paris. April S. 1919. "Dear .Madam: I have very great !j pleasure in sending you this cable to ay how highly 1 think of the great ; work which has been done by the i Salvation Army amongst the Allied armies in France and the other the atres of war. From ull sides 1 hear iJthe most glowing accounts of the w; y hi which your people have added to (the comfort and welfare of our sol ;diers. T<> me it has always been a great joy to think how much the suf ferings and hardships endured by our I troops in all parts o;* the world have 'I been lessened by the self-sacrifice and devotion shown t<? them by that excellent organization, the Salvation (Armv. " ' Tlie Salvation Army Home Service ! Fund Campaign for $13.000.000 will j be conducted during the week of! May 19-25. Peking Cut Off [American Ambassador Reports j Interruption of Wire Service J Paris. May S.?American Amhas isador Reinch at Peking has informed [Secretary Lansing that all wire cora ; munication out of Peking has been i cut, except one wire to Siberia. Reappearance of Chaparone Resumption of English Industry That' War Destroyed London, April 1 (Correspondence of the Associated Press)?The- chapei" one is reappearing in London, after more than four years of absence he cause of the war. American women, the society lenders say. are respon sible, because they want to see Lon don, and independent and self reliant as they are. they du not want to see ;t. wit hour the assurance they will be well chaperoned. The chaperone, once a well estab lished institution in England, lost her calling when women went in for war work. Many a young girl who had never ventured from home without the guiding hand of a chaperone took j to driving an ambulance, while others ? were installed in the "Waaes." the I "Raffs" <>r soni" one of the many oth er women's organizations which had i to do with the prosecution of tin- war. IThese vigorous young women had no i us*- for ? haperones. j Th American women who want chaperones also are war workers. Red i Cross. Young Women's Christian As j sociation aids and miens who are 'here. They, too. are self reliant and I independent, but when they doff their uniforms and go out to see London or spend a. part of their very little j leisure time in the gaieties of the city, they feel they ought to subscribe to j the conventions. ANTWERP i Is Slowly Resuming Business Activity, i _ i i Antwerp, April 16 (Correspondence ? of The Associated Press)?Antwerp [appears to be passing through a pro i cess of resurrection, although the ton J nag? handled since the port was re i opened more than three months ago represents that which .would ordinar ily come through this port in one j week during the days prior to the I war. Ships now come straggling in, and along the seven-mile waterfront j the winch is heard creaking here and [there, and the vision in some of the j great sheds is obstructed by unpreton ! tious stacks of bags of American rice j and rows of barrels of Chicago pork, and there are foodstuffs, clothing and j manufactured articles, most of which. ! however, is for immediate use. J The American Commission of Re J lief in Belgium had seventeen steam ships in port early in April and the j American base for supplying the j American army of occupation in Ger many was unloading five others. ! Shipping men are anxiously await ing the opening of the American base at Contich, about two miles outside I of Antwerp on the Malines road. Bar I racks are being erected at Contich for i the accommodation of 20,000 soldiers l?t a time. This is expected to inject a little more life into Antwerp port. The grounds picked out for the American base is a vast plain, dry and well irrigated, and the doughboys will find living and sanitary conditions there much better than in other bases which have achieved greater prestige. The Americans have taken over some of the piers where North Ger man-Lloyd steamships formerly dock ed. The early work was arduous, as the piers were encumbered with grav el imported from Holland by Ger mans, ostensibly to repair roads but actually to build reinforced concrete shelters, augouts and trenches. One! hundred thousand cubic yards of the j gravel had to he removed before, the j piers could he used. It is estimated the Germans had enough gravel there! to repair Belgian roads for fifty years. Fifteen thousand longshoremen and! stevedores are idle here and the only solution shipping men find when | questioned as to how the situation can [ be remedied may be summed up in | one word: "America." Souvenirs From Coblenz American Soldiers Sending- Va riety of Articles to Home Folks Coblenz, April ?Soldiers of the American Army of Occupation in the I region of Coblenz have been sending I home more souvenirs recently than at any previous time since the Americans reached the Rhine. At first these souvenirs consisted of German hel imets, iron crosses, bayonets and oth er articles ol war used by tin- defeat ed army, bin 01* late the soldiers have been buying German steins and other articles made of pottery. Within the American area on the east bank of the Rhine there are several pottery plants which have been working overtime during the past few weeks turning out souvenirs for the soldiers. All kinds of potterj pieces are made, bearing the soldiers'} name and unit while he watches the! process of manufacture. At the Amor-1 iean postoffice in Coblenz officers esti mate that about sixty mail sacks of souvenirs are shipped, to the Cnited States every day. Spend Less Enjoy Yourself More Take Your r Vacation m? \m\ at tho Redpath |r Chautauqua i The 100% Program Chnuta-mui Week Hero. May 1G-2; 3. I Rate Arguments Concluded Supreme Court May Decide Soon Washington, May 6.?Arguments in the telephone and telegraph rate cases involving the. authority of the post ! master generrl to increase intrastate 'toll rates wer concluded late today in jihe supreme court and the cases taken I under advisement. In view of the im portance of the questions involved both in the wire cases and railroad rate eases argued yesterday, it is be lieved the court will render decisions in the two cases before the summer adjournment next month, j The court before recessing today 'until May 19 issued an order permit | ting the postmaster general to charge j increased telegraph rates in Illinois land temporarily stayed the carrying j into effect of injunctions, issued by j federal Judge Landis enjoining the i postmaster general from making the increase effective. The order, which [was announced by Chief Justice I White, remains in effect until the ap ! peais have been finally disposed of ami continues in operation a similar order granted by the lower court for the purpose of permitting the appeal to be brought. With the conclusion of the heur j ings today arguments in all pending j cases closed for the term. The court. I however, after rendering opinions on May 1!} will receive for two weeks, land final adjournment for the sum mer will be on June S. Arguments today were made by W. P. Hitchcock of Boston, assistant at torney general for Massachusetts; Oli ver E. Sweet, assistant attorney gen eral of South Dakota; Fred S. Jack son, representing the State of Kan sas, and Raymond S. Pruitt, assistant attorney general of Illinois, all in be half of proceedings attacking the postmaster general's order brought in their respective States. Henry ! S. Robbins of Chicago made the closing argument for the government. Attorneys representing the States contended that adequate provision had been made by the States for deter mining the justness of intrastate wire, rates, that the interstate commerce I commission had authority to regulate j rates, although this power had never I been exercised and that congress had * no intention and no thought of any j one attempting to exercise the juris l diction over the wire propertie's the I postmaster general is exercising. Mr. j Robbins contended that congress con j fered "one man power" upon the j president to enable him to take over the resources of the country for the successful prosecution of the war, that he or his agents had ample au thority to fix rates and that congress had no intention 6f hampering him in the operation of these utilities. The Trans-Atlantic Air Race. At least a score of aircraft, of va ried design, ^flying the flags of six nations, are being prepared for. trans Atlantic flight. Xo contest has prob jably ever aroused so general an inter I national r.v'alry, or faced so extreme a I hazard. The oversea flight is the se j verest. as it is the most picturesque, ! demonstrating of flying craft, and of the skill and daring of air pilots. The successful Atlantic crossing by air craft, so confidently predicted, will close, dramatically, its amazing war activities and inaugurate its commer cial conquests. The United States enters the contest .yith a formidable fleet of aircraft. Our main dependence is probably the great navy Hying boats of the N. C. 1 type, which are now being tuned up for the race. One of these airboats with a wing spread of 125 feet has ac tually carried Hi passengers in flight, reaching a speed of upwards of 100 miles an hour. By utilizing this car rying capacity to stow away gasoline, the boat, with a crew of four men and their provisions, will have a cruis ing radius of over 2,000 miles. At least one of these boats has been equipped with four Liberty Motors develop! over 1,200 horsepower, which gives four chances to one over a angle mo tored machine. America, and 'Eng land will cooperate in -^plaVing swift torpedo-boat destroyers at intervals of sixty miles along the course, which . will be in constant communication by ! wireless telegraph or telephone with I the flying craft. An army pilot may attempt the flight with one of the huge high-pow ered Martin bombers. The craft has a wing spread of 100 feet, an unusual carrying capacity, and a speed higher than that of the flying boats. The land machine carries no pontoons of any kind, but should it be forced down in the water it is planned to send up a small balloon attached to the forward part of the craft, which will serve to keep it afloat in definitely, as well as signal over an ex tended radius for assistance. It is rumored in the trade that at least two aircraft manufacturers are working on special machines for over seas llights whose secrets are being carefully guarded. America will also be represented in the contest by at least two airships. The largest of the naval dirigibles, a 20fi-foot blimp, is being made ready, and a well-known I balloon manufacturer has constructed j.a giant dirigible 650 feet in length designed for oversea hying. -Francis Arnold Collins, in the American Re view of Reviews for May Palace of Cortez Ancient Edifice to Be Repaired and Used as Museum Mexico City. April 15.?The palace of Cortez. in the suburbs of Coyoacan, is to l>e reconstructed by the govern ment and used as a museum for rel ics of the Spanish conquest. Thrt structure, 400 years old. has been al lowed to fall into ruins. In the court yard are ancient trees, under which Hernan Cortez and his familiars were wont to rest. These are hundreds of years older than the ancient building itself. The chapel attached to the palace is still in good condition.