“A man called at the houses of the gentry, made many sales at the usual swindling prices, and disarmed all suspicions by inviting the purchasers to call at his residence, and make any exchange they pleased. In some cases, where the price was objected to, or the parties were taken by surprise, not having suspected that they wanted Spectacles until this experienced professional optician told them they did, they were, notwithstanding imposed upon, ‘for,’ said he, ‘to prove that I am anxious to preserve your sight, which is rapidly leaving you, and cataract is growing in your eyes, these Spectacles, which are five pounds per pair, I will leave you at half-price, and you may pay me the balance at any time.’ This offer appeared so very liberal that it succeeded in several instances, and, it is scarcely necessary to say, left to the hawker forty shillings profit, five pounds being only mentioned to get more easily the smaller sum.
“But the most profitable part of the scheme is yet to be told. Those who purchased soon found that something was wrong—the patent preservers gave great uneasiness to the eyes, which, suffused with tears, seemed to grieve at the simplicity and credulity of their owners. The residence of Mr. —— was besieged with complaining purchasers, who, when their turn arrived, were ushered into the presence of the other of the partners, and as the person who had sold them the Spectacles promised to make any exchange they required, they asked for a pair which would suit their sight, or a return of the money paid. The man they now saw looked at them, and asked, ‘Am I the person who sold you the spectacles?’ ‘Why, no,’ was the reply, ‘I cannot say you were the gentleman, but he was uncommonly like you, and he told me he would exchange the Spectacles if they did not suit.’
“‘Then you had better find him and compel him to do so, for the trash he has sold you will destroy your eyes and ruin your sight. He is an impostor; I know nothing of him.’ ‘Bless me,’ said the disappointed purchaser, ‘what a scandalous shame! what would you advise me to do now, Sir?’
“‘Why, my Spectacles are produced after twenty years of deep study and research, and manufactured, under my own eyes, upon improved principles, yet I only ask fifty shillings per pair; but I am sorry for you and though those you have bought are vile rubbish, I will take them in exchange, and thirty-five shillings for my Patent Tinted Crystals, which are the only Spectacles proper for the eyes.’ Thus the reader will perceive a double imposition was effected. A., after performing his part in the scheme of deception, kept out of the way until B. had completed the fleecing of the nobility, gentry, and public, and in a few weeks the resident opticians were on their way to other places, chuckling at their success, and inventing fresh plans of operation.”
Page after page has been pirated from the works of eminent authors, and palmed upon the public as their own composition; consequently, though the advice may be excellent, the parties from whom it appears to emanate are vile plagiarists, whose practice is quite uninfluenced thereby. When imposture disguises itself in such a plausible form the difficulty of detection is increased, therefore our best security against deception is to transact business with men of known reputation. The resident tradesman has a character for fair and honourable dealing to maintain. He can be appealed to if any exchange or alteration is requisite, and the spirit of fair competition, now abroad, is the best security against overcharge from him; while the itinerant vender and pompous advertiser has to repay himself for such forced and expensive means of getting custom by exacting great prices, pushing off coarse and inferior goods, and practising any dishonest trick rather than not effect a sale of his wares. It may be said, with great truth, “his articles are not cried up because they are things that ought to be desired, but they are desired because they are generally cried up.”
The Liverpool Mercury of Friday, Sep. 15th, 1834, has some remarks on this subject, which, as they are important and appropriate to our purpose, I transcribe:—
“We beg to caution our readers against the arts of all those who profess to supply the public with superior Spectacles; we have been for many years connected with the business, and we can assure the public that the Spectacle glasses sold by the advertising eye quacks are precisely the same as those provided by any respectable optician, the only difference being in the price. The charlatan varies his charge according to the gullibility of his dupes; sometimes he puts up with double the proper and regular price, but more frequently he exacts three or four times more than a regular and honest optician charges. We recollect a once famous optical quack, in London, who made a large fortune by cheating the public. He advertised his superior glasses, which he assured the public were all ground to the true parabolic curve by his own hand, and for each of these glasses he charged four shillings, whilst the working optician who lived a few doors from him, and who furnished him with all his glasses, could only get nine pence for the very article for which the puffing eye doctor charged four shillings. As we knew both the parties we pledge ourselves to the fact, and, in conclusion, we advise the public to have nothing to do with quacks, whether they be scientific quacks, who are plentiful enough, or other quacks, who swindle people out of their health and cash at the same time.”
CHAPTER VIII.
“Who will, for him, may boast of sense,
His better guard is impudence.”